


Can you keep a secret?

by IronicIronMan



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alcoholic Clint Barton, Angst, Arguing, Avengers Family, Avengers Tower, Basically an old married couple already, But reallly on the down low, Clint Barton Feels, Clint Barton Needs a Hug, Clint can't tie a tie, Clint has a big issue with pine apple pizza, Clint is low-key bi, Clintasha - Freeform, Couch Cuddles, Cute, Cute dumb jokes, Deaf Clint Barton, Denial of Feelings, Developing Relationship, Dom Natasha Romanov, Domestic Avengers, Everyone Thinks They're Together, Everyone ships them, F/M, Falling In Love, FitzSimmons and Clintasha give off the same energy y'all can't convince me otherwise, Fluff, Hurt Clint Barton, Idiots in Love, Jealousy, Maybe Nat is too but won't admit it, Morning Cuddles, Natasha Romanov Feels, Natasha Romanov Has Issues, Natasha Romanov Needs a Hug, Natasha is secretly a dork, Non stop teasing of the other, Non-Explicit Sex, Post-Divorce, SHIELD Family, Secret Relationship, She's not always murder murder stab, Slow Burn, Spies & Secret Agents, Sub Clint Barton, Sweet, Switch Clint Barton, Tickle Fights, Undercover Missions, Wedding, Wedding date, and so should you, clint is a dork, divorced clint, romantic dancing, soft Nat
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-15
Updated: 2021-02-27
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:49:18
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 84,716
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27569323
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IronicIronMan/pseuds/IronicIronMan
Summary: The battle of new york occurred last year, leaving half of the city in shambles. From this event, the Avengers were created - a group of talented people that when combined become this unstoppable force. A year has passed since the event and while the team is still in play each member is doing their own thing in between saving the world all while occupying the Avengers tower. While for the most part most of the team is doing their own thing, Clint and Natasha still work together on the daily back at SHIELD and like always their five-year friendship was going just fine. Or at least that's what the two were trying to convince themselves as their relationship began to evolve into something they aren't happy to talk about. While their relationship begins to change, one by one their secrets slowly become revealed ... will this change things? But more importantly ... can you keep a secret?
Relationships: Clint Barton/Bobbi Morse, Clint Barton/Natasha Romanov, Lance Hunter/Bobbi Morse, Leo Fitz/Jemma Simmons, Peggy Carter/Steve Rogers
Comments: 4
Kudos: 14





	1. Let's kick some Russian ass

**Author's Note:**

> Hey there! It has been a very long time since writing here but that is probably for the best as I've had time to work on my writing and hopefully make it less cringy. This ship is a little bit niche, I know not many people ship it and I didn't use to ship it until I was able to take the story into my own hands! A little about the characters and how I write them as my take on personality is a tad different. With Clint, I usually write him as this very goofy character who is always cracking jokes and not taking things seriously (I might also note that in my head he is cast as Jensen Ackles because he is a beautiful man who would have made an excellent Clint) whereas Natasha ... is well you know how she is and we love her for that. But yeah I like to have my own interpretation on characters and stuff so that's that! Anyways, I hope you enjoy this story I've taken different tropes from familiar movies and such because why not but yeah I'll shut up. Enjoy!
> 
> -J

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha asks Clint to go to Russia with her in order to complete a top-secret mission, one of which is completely irrelevant to their S.H.I.E.L.D. activities but rather is a personal one. Upon arriving in Russia, the two travel to a discrete location in order to prepare themselves for what is soon to come. Though things don't exactly go as smoothly as she had planned but with Clint Barton involved that was always inevitable.

It wasn’t every day Clint Barton was asked to go on a top-secret mission, well actually it was considering his job was practically that of a spy but that wasn’t exactly the point. It wasn’t every day he was asked to go on a personal top-secret mission. Now Barton wasn’t exactly one for keeping his head down and his mouth shut, he liked to talk and once he did he was pretty hard to shut up again. Hence why he was usually the last person asked if he wanted to join a mission that required anything in the rough vicinity of being secretive. But just because he had a big mouth didn’t know he didn’t know when to shut it, at least that was the case most of the time. 

Though in terms of personal missions, it was a rarity especially considering that he did enough normal missions on the daily and he was kinda done with the whole ‘Vengeance mission’. He’d left that in the dust when he’d taken the decision to join S.H.I.E.L.D., he had enough blood on his hands already there was no need for anymore. 

But when Natasha approached Clint with a brief outline of a mission … he couldn’t just say no. Clint knew that if Nat was asking him to help her with something it meant that he shouldn’t even question her motives and just accept because she wasn’t one to ask for help unless it was absolutely necessary. 

And it had been so long since either of them had properly been out in the field and he was dying to get out of the country, even if that was just for sort of work reasons. Plus it was another excuse to spend more time with her because in recent times it was almost like she was purposely avoiding him which was weird considering the oddly strong bond they shared. Sure Clint was aware he could be annoying, make inappropriate jokes - the list could go on but that was beside the point. She was his partner in crime, the one person who could truly put up with him and while he wouldn’t say this out loud but Clint was honestly grateful for her and the scary amount of patience that she had for him.

It wasn’t so long ago that she had finally opened up to him about her past, something that was a very touchy subject and something that she hadn’t told anyone about. Of course, he has previously been aware of some aspects of her past as he originally was the one to introduce her to S.H.I.E.L.D and this whole Avengers thing. But besides knowing that she was heavily involved within the KGB, she wouldn’t speak much further than that about it. Which was fine by him because he didn’t want to push her any further than he already had so once he brought her back to S.H.I.E.L.D. he didn’t dare ask her. So when she actually decided to fill him in on everything else, that was a true sign that she trusted him. 

To him, it felt like only yesterday when the two had first come across one another in one of his very first missions. The past five years had been a breeze, rushing past him without even noticing but he could still vividly remember their meeting. Clint had been ordered to kill Natasha Romanov, a woman who had been mixed with the KGB and had been responsible for dozens of recorded deaths and possibly more off record. So if he were to go by the books he shouldn’t have much of an issue putting her down considering the amount of lives she took. But when Clint was faced directly opposite her with a gun pointed right in her direction, he just couldn’t bring himself to ending the woman’s life. And it wasn’t even like he hadn’t killed before, because as much as he hated to admit it he had but there was something that just didn’t sit right in his gut. 

All it really took was one scared look which made him think that maybe there was more to this woman than a deadly Russian agent who had taken far too many lives. There was something about her that even with him gripping a pistol to her head he just couldn’t pull the trigger. With his feelings of doubt, he thought that there was a possibility to finally do some good with his life and maybe change things around for the Russian as well. So without another thought to plague his mind, he asked her if she wanted to leave this world behind and join him. To his surprise, she took him up on his offer and here they were. And to this day, he had never regretted the decision and he knew that he never would.

But that was more than enough dwelling on the past and the day of the mission was drawing close, meaning it was time to gather everything they needed. Before leaving he had consulted Fury about the whole mission, they were going to need a hand smuggling weapons onto a plane because these days it wasn’t as easy as it looked. And it never really looked very easy. At first, when he approached Fury, the man completely dismissed him but Clint just told him that they were going to do it, whether he liked it or not. The idea of losing his ‘best agents’ (Clint’s words not his), wasn’t exactly on his to-do list so Fury ending up supplying them with all the equipment they would need to smuggle their goods through airport security and back.

Though he has tried to get Clint to tell him exactly what they were planning on doing but he refused to supply him with any extra information, knowing if he did that the man would have some other trick up his sleeve to turn the whole operation around. This mission wasn’t about him or S.H.I.E.L.D., it was about Natasha and her own personal mission and he intended to keep it that way. 

With everything in play, all that was left was to fly to Russia, though they were going to have to do that part separately. Arriving at the same time was dangerous and could blow their cover. Unlike Natasha, there was no way in hell Clint could pull off a Russian accent, well technically could but it would likely throw their entire mission out of the window, so stereotypical American tourist it was. Time to get his trucker hat and wearable camera out of the closet.

After gathering all the supplies they needed it was time for him to leave the US of A. Taking a cab to the airport, he had tried to pack as lightly as he could but considering most of his suitcase was taken up by a variety of different tech and gadgets it ended up weighing like a ton so he sent it ahead with her, it would be there waiting for him when he arrived. The flight to Moscow was awfully long and boring, it didn’t help that he was flying in Economy meaning that he happened to have a very lovey-dovey older woman sat next to him. And she was not afraid to get close to him. Clint was more than happy to run away from that plane as soon as they landed. Glancing at his watch it was creeping up to the time Natasha had set for him to come and pick him up.  
Taking a few steps outside he stuck his hands on his hips, looking left and right for any cars but he knew she would be here eventually so he wasn’t particularly worried about that. And just like that a car soon rolled up in front of him. Now it could have been two people, either Natasha or the Russian mob. He hoped to god that it was Nat. 

The window rolled down revealing the familiar redhead and he couldn’t help but break out into a smile. ‘Is that the archer I ordered?’ The female agent spoke, a slight smirk bringing up the contours of her lips. Shaking his head, he walked around the side of the car before he pulled open the door and slid inside. “You betcha. Though he got a little damaged in delivery, too bad there are no refunds” Clint said with a grin.

Not much was said for the rest of the journey, besides Natasha thanking him for coming. He couldn’t really pull any real words from his jumbled thoughts so instead, he just nodded slightly and smiled at her. Clint knew she was thankful, she didn’t even have to tell him for him to know. 

Diverting his gaze out of the window, trying to take in the view that they were quickly flying past. Clint knew that this was probably the only real chance we were going to get the chance to have a proper look at the beauty Russia had to offer. “You never told me how beautiful Russia was ‘Tasha,” The archer said as he glanced over towards the redhead who was driving the car. Natasha clearly tensed up at the mention of the beauty in her home country, one which had been the delivery of her pain. Glaring over at Clint, she shook her head as she stayed silent for a little while longer before eventually opening up again. ‘Right yeah because the place that ruined my life can be considered beautiful Clint,’ Natasha mumbled, causing Barton to shut off completely leaving the rest of their car journey to stew in silence. 

Time passed until eventually, they pulled up in front of a shabby looking apartment that was definitely looking worse for wear. Barton couldn’t even survey the surrounding area because it was pitch black, Clint was not a fan of the area but he trusted Natasha and her surveillance skills so for now, he would hold his judgement for later on. 

The two agents got out of the car and he followed Natasha as she made her way through the back alley. They were then inside the small apartment that they had rented and despite everything, it wasn’t too bad. A little cosy but there was nothing wrong with cosy. Well besides the fact the walls were peeling and there was a clear breeze running through the underside of the door.’

‘Your stuff is in the bedroom. Everything you gave me. I hope Fury didn’t install any trackers in your bow or quiver, else I have to get rid of you.’ Natasha said in a teasing manner, a smile threatening her lips as she finally broke the silence that had fallen between them.

“You’d wanna get rid of me? I’m your best here! Psh, I find that very hard to believe Nat.” He said with a light laugh as he glanced around the apartment. ‘You might be my best here but may I also remind you that your my only here so watch it, Barton,’ Nat said with a grin before she shook her head as she stepped further into the apartment. 

Clasping his hands together Clint just chuckled as he followed her “So are we gonna talk about what’s to come or do you want to leave the business talk ‘til tomorrow. Either way, I can make a mean spaghetti if you are hungry?” He said as he took another step inside of the apartment and walked into the kitchen. ‘If you want to take me out for dinner you gotta pick something fancier, Barton. Besides, the stove isn’t even working. Did you really think I’d pay more than needed for this apartment? I’m afraid we have to go right to business.’ The red-head mused with a playful pout as she took a seat at the kitchen table, patting the seat next to her before reaching across to a bag as she began to rifle through it.

“I cannot believe you, Romanoff. After all, I didn’t take you for the five-star dining type of girl” A soft sigh escaped the archer’s lips as he nodded with a slight smirk before begrudgingly taking a seat next to her waiting to hear what she had to say. So far he was only briefly aware of what the plan was, go in and out of the facility to get the information they needed but that was it. Natasha was very picky about keeping him the dark until the last moment, which was understandable considering his reputation to letting things slip.

‘So, as I already told you, we’re going to infiltrate a facility of the KGB. There’s a high number of guards patrolling each hallway and the majority of the rooms so once we’re in, there’s only a short window for us to delete the data and get out. Should we be detected, we’re dead. There’s no second chance. I know we did a lot of jobs where things went completely different as planned, but here we can’t improvise. We need to follow the plan, strictly. There are two ways to get in, from the roof... or the sewer. Let’s hope for your sake it’s not the latter…’ Natasha said, going through the entire plan very briefly but efficiently as she covered all the main stages. Glancing over to Clint she read his facial expression which was interesting, to say the least as the blonde had both a concerned and confused expression slapped over his face. 

Pouting his lips together, the archer wasn’t exactly sure what he should be focusing on considering the large amount of information he had just been bombarded with. Clint rubbed the back of his neck before parting his lips ever so slightly. “Well, that’s not intimidating at all. I mean who’s gonna win? Dozens of Russian agents or a dude with sharp sticks and a chick wielding batons?” He asked before shaking his head. “That’s not even the worse part! I am not getting in a sewer, I’m making it clear now because I do not want to have to burn these my clothes…” He grumbled before running his fingers through his hair.

Natasha responded with a scoff as she rolled her eyes in the others direction, clearly almost regretting her decision to bring him aboard in the first place. ‘Besides your ridiculous complaints, is everything understood?’ Nat asked him which got a quick nod from Clint as he replied with a solid “No ma’am,”. A couple of seconds of empty air hung between the two until Natasha eventually broke it once again as there was still something she needed to get off of her chest. ‘I know I am asking for a lot and I don’t know how to repay you for this, but know that I couldn’t be any more grateful than I already am. And I know that this might be a bit too much, so if you want to leave, now is the moment. I won’t judge you... not too hard.’ She said, the words leaving her mouth with almost no effort. While she didn’t show it, especially not to him, she needed Clint on this mission. Not only physically but mentally as well because she couldn’t do this on her own. Not that she would ever let him know that, that was a sign of weakness - something she couldn’t afford especially not now as she was so close to the end.

“Tasha…” He said softly as he shook his head. “You know you don’t owe me anything, we’ve already spoken about this. I know how thankful you are for me, I mean let’s be real who wouldn’t want me on their team?” Clint teased with a slight smile, trying to lift the mood. “I am not going anywhere, I am here for you and that is a promise. No backing out now.” The blond said with a soft smile, trying his very hardest to let her know that he was going to be here for her no matter what.

After Clint opened up, the room fell silent but not in an awkward way but instead it gave time for the words exchanged to sink it rather than them just be skipped over. So for a few seconds, nothing was said, or at least until Natasha got up from her seat and began to rifle through her things. Looking over at her, Clint carefully shifted in his seat as he began to look around the room for his things only to see that there was nothing. “Uh, my stuff did come, right? Normally it wouldn’t be a big deal but I’m really not sure I could squeeze into your spandex,” He said with a grin before standing up from the sofa. Nat scoffed at his comment before turning around in order to look at him with her arms crossed firmly over her chest. Yes, your clothes and other amenities are in the bedroom. But I’m sure if you tried hard enough you’d manage to fit in them,’ She said with a smirk before turning her back on him once again.

“Alright alright. I mean if you really want I can try but I think that’s for another night,” He grumbled as he glanced into the hallway to see a set of stairs which lead to one door. Narrowing his eyes, he turned back around. “Wait is there only one bedroom?” He queried before Nat answered him without hesitation. ‘Yes, which I’ll be having and you’ll be on the couch’ She said without even turning around which caused him to frown slightly as he looked down at the beaten couch. “Right...Guess that makes sense. Anyway, I’ll let you get dressed, I’ll be upstairs if you need me,” He said with a small smile before leaving her be in order to scale the stairs.

Entering the bedroom, he found all the items he had packed, not one being damaged to remotely touched. Brushing his fingertips over his Hawkeye outfit he smiled lightly as memories slowly flowed back to him. This suit contained so much history. Maybe one day there would be a whole museum under his name, telling the great stories of Hawkeye - something which he doubted very much considering there were so many other people that had done more good than he had. Clint laughed at such a preposterous idea, he couldn’t even begin to imagine how something like that would unfold. That being said he totally imagine Nick Fury having a statue of a museum in his honour, he was one of those guys who wanted to be remembered forever despite actually admitting it. Smirking Clint sighed softly as he began to change out of his civilian clothes and into his mission clothes. Though halfway through doing so he got a little sidetracked as the glimmer of his bow on the bedside table caught his eye. Remembering the comment Natasha had told him earlier, he was slowly becoming paranoid. There was no harm in checking was there? With that thought, he placed down his suit and wandered over to his bow and quiver. Lifting up his bow, he ran his fingers over every edge trying to see if there was a bug to be found but nothing. He did the same with his quiver by emptying it of the arrows and shining light within it but nothing again. Of course, Clint was just being incredibly paranoid. So what was new?

A voice rang through the house that could be no other than Natasha herself. Of course, she was ready and by the sounds, the stairs were making she was on her way to the bedroom. After Clint getting distracted he had only de clothed himself and was yet to get dressed so he was stood there half-naked. With his eyes going wide, he quickly span around in order to grab the nearest pillow in order to cover his partially covered crotch just in time for her to open the door. As soon as the door opened, she stuck her head around the corner only to see a very half-naked Clint stood there staring right back at her but rather than saying anything, just stared at him until an awkward amount of time had passed to which she quickly pulled back and slammed the door shut. ‘Just come down when your ready’ She said through the door before quickly making her way down the stairs.

Taking in a deep breath, he felt blood rush to his cheeks from embarrassment. Shaking his head he really needed to get his act together. Tossing the pillow aside he focused solely on getting changed. Before he knew it he was back clad in a tight leather outfit. Oh, he did not miss that awful amount of chafing that was happening but he would suck it up for now. Slinging his bow and quiver over his shoulder he glanced down at the dual pistols he had also packed. He was seriously debating leaving them behind but what was the point. Sliding them both into his hip holsters he stretched out. This mission was going to be intense, that much he could tell. Rubbing his eyes he breathed out once again, he was ready for whatever the hell this country was going to throw at him. With that, he approached the bedroom door and pulled it open before quickly jogging down the stairs only to find his partner all ready to go waiting for him.

By the looks of things he hadn’t been the only one who was still a little shaken about the whole naked ordeal but he was more than happy to push past that and pretend as it had never happened. So rather than talking about it, he tried his best to just skip past it by changing the subject. “I heard there was a communicator waiting for me?” He asked with his hand outstretched to take it off of her. Though rather than handing it to him directly, she picked up the slightly larger communicator that went over his hearing aids and pressed it against his chest with a flat palm. Frowning slightly, his hand wrapped around hers before pulling it away with the communicator now tucked away in his palm before attaching it over his ear and hearing aid. “Now. Let’s go kick some Russian ass,”


	2. We’re in my territory now

‘I’d prefer if we didn’t have to kick some ass at all, but should there be the need, I’ll gladly kick some Russian ass with you.’ The redhead commented with a gentle smirk before turning her body towards the door. Reaching out, she grabbed the car keys before motioning for Clint to follow her. ‘Enough chit chat, get your ass in the car,’ She said shaking her head before leaving him in order to head straight to the car. Huffing out a breath of air, Clint rolled his eyes before glancing down at the table he reached out and grabbed the other part of his communicator as he examined it. Satisfied with the gadget, Barton carefully tucked it into his utility belt. He really hoped that it wouldn’t come to them needing these tonight if they did that would mean they would get separated. 

In a mission like this separating from one another was practically just a death sentence. At least Natasha might be able to squirm herself out of the situation with the use of her native tongue, while Clint had tried his very hardest to get a grasp of the Russian language he was an absolute loss for words. Quite literally. He had wanted to surprise Natasha by being able to say something but he just ended up absolutely butchering every word, at least she got some enjoyment of watching him struggle. If Clint ever got cornered by the KGB he would just look like some dumb American who had ended up in the wrong place, he would probably be killed on the spot. So maybe it was best if they tried their hardest to stick with one another.

The two made their way to the car that was parked outside. Walking around the dark vehicle he opened up the passenger’s door and slid inside the car. Switching his focus to the window, he stared out of it trying to take in the surroundings but the lack of sunlight meant he could only make out the rough silhouettes of what he assumed to be buildings and the odd tree here and there. The car ride was much shorter than the previous one, the car finally came to a stop. Clint was prepared for whatever the hell this place was prepared to throw at him.

A couple of minutes and red lights later they finally arrived in another back alley though they had chosen to leave the car behind. ‘From here we need to go on foot. Some exercise will do you good though,’ Before he got the possibility to respond, Natasha had already rushed out of the car on her side and threw the door shut. Just as Natasha had predicted, Clint was sat in the car with his jaw half hanging open as he racked his brain in order to think of something slick that he could retort back to but by the time he had done such a thing she was already out of the car. Smirking, Clint just shook his head as he reached the door so he could leave. 

“I’ll show you exercise” He grumbled under his breath, which technically didn’t even make sense but he didn’t care. Both agents carefully walked through alleyways and streets that were pretty much abandoned. Even though the two were practically armed to the brim, Clint couldn’t help but still be on the edge a little considering he knew what sort of hellscape they were about to expose themselves to.

Upon arriving at the base, it was quite obvious that Clint was a little disappointed. He had hoped that it was going to look something like it was in the movies with flying drones and guards stacked every five metres. Though in hindsight it was a good thing that this was nothing like the movies, otherwise there was a very good chance that the of them would already be dead because no matter how good they were at their jobs they couldn’t exactly outmatch a whole army.

Luckily for them, the outside of the building was practically unsupervised or at least that was what they had thought. Up until that point the agents had been very careful to be very light on their feet in order to avoid any major sounds to be made. Natasha suddenly stopped in her tracks, causing Clint to do the same. Holding his breath, he leant his head forward allowing him to hear the faint sound of voices. He couldn’t make out their words but it sounded Russian so it wouldn’t help anyway if he could hear. Natasha turned around before quickly whispering. ‘Wait here, I’ll lure them to you and we’ll take them out together’ She whispered to which he nodded, he knew what she was going to do though wasn’t sure it would work. 

Nodding at her, Clint pressed his back against the wall and patiently waited until he heard her start to talk once again. Taking in a sharp breath, his entire focus was centred onto waiting for the signal - which in this case he had no idea what it would be but there really was only one way to find out.

With Clint now hidden behind one of the walls, it was Natasha's time to shine. Turning the very corner that Clint was hidden behind, she put on her most pathetic face as two heavily armed men came into sight, she was trying to act as innocent as she could. Luckily the darkness wouldn’t reveal too much of her attire. Russian speech could be heard, Natasha playing a damsel in distress, telling them her car broke down and that she needed two strong men to help her get it back on the street. Of course, those two belonged to the usual crotch-driven sort of men and instantly followed her, eventually moving with her around the corner where Clint should be still waiting. With a step to the side, she revealed him to their eyes and smirked as she turned around, pointing her pistols at them. ‘очень спокойный! ‘Relax.’

As soon as Clint heard the shrill of Natashas voice - obviously put on considering the pitch of her voice something that Clint had never heard before and if it was in another situation he would have found amusement in it - he prepared by swinging his bow off of his shoulder and notching an arrow into it as he pulled it back, waiting for the time to strike. By the sounds of the voices there we at least two of them so he was going to have to act quickly. Cracking his neck, Clint breathed in as he kept his focus on the edge of the corner until he heard three pairs of footsteps carefully approach. The look on the men’s faces was pretty hilarious as they were met by an arrow and a pistol. 

“Looks like showtime is over boys,” He said as he let go of the bowstring allowing the arrow to slice through the air before embedding itself into the soft flesh to the side of the kneecap. Without another second to think, Clint quickly reached behind his back to grab another arrow from his quiver and attached it to his bow before shooting the other guy in a similar area.

Though it seemed that leaving them with arrows in their knees wasn’t good enough so quickly dropping his bow he closed the space between him and the first guy. Lifting up his elbow he quickly brought it down onto his shoulder planning to disorientate him before grabbing him by the torso and throwing him into the wall. Doing so caused a collision with the wall and his head making him drop unconscious. Straightening up Clint watched the second man drop to his knees still fawning over his original wound giving him the perfect shot to lift his leg and drive the bottom of his heel into his forehead. Both men were now slumped over on the floor.

Natasha smirked and stepped aside, her pistols still aimed at their heads should one of them believe he could play tough guy. ‘Not bad… Not bad,’ She said as she span both of her pistols around her fingers before holstering them. ‘Though you didn’t need to be so aggressive. The arrows would have sufficed’ She teased with a slight grin as she stepped over the bodies. Her response caused Clint to frown and instantly started to shake his head showing her that he did not agree with what she was saying. “Psh yeah right. If it wasn’t for me you’d be dead so uh your welcome.” Clint scoffed as he followed her around the side of the building, as he did so he carefully pulled the arrows out of the unconscious men - arrows didn’t exactly grow on trees. “I will admit though, was a little surprised that worked,” He mused just as they came to a stop at a ladder.

‘Are you surprised? I did not doubt your skills for one second. Also, you should know that the brain of a man simply turns off when beautiful women make mooneyes at them.’ She smirked, gripping the ladder at the side of the warehouse that led to the roof. Before she climbed up, her gaze locked with his though, lifting a brow. ‘If I catch you staring at my ass…’ Much more wasn’t needed to say. He could probably what he had to face if said thing happened. “Hey now, what kind of man do you take me for?” Clint said snickering, a grin forming at the corner of his lips. Glancing up he had hoped the redhead was at the top only to realise she wasn’t. Quickly moving his head back down, he did not want to be actually executed.

As soon as both agents clambered over the top of the ladder, Clint keeled over with his hands firmly planted on each of his knees in order to catch his breath in a rather dramatic fashion. “Maybe … Maybe you were right. I need the exercise” He said in between breaths. Placing his hands on his hips, he surveyed the surrounding area while trying to get his breath back. No-one seemed to be nearby, which was good because at the moment he wasn’t really in a fit state to actually do much. His eyes did settle on the metal tubes that took up nearly all of the roof. It looked like this was how they were going to be getting inside. Rolling her eyes at Barton’s state, she couldn’t help but let out a soft chuckle. ‘Honestly lay off the fast food. At this rate I’m going to need to find a new partner, one who can actually keep up with me’ She grumbled before switching her attention towards the metal vents.

‘This is how we go in. I…’ Taking a look at him, then the shaft, she might’ve not thought about his manly frame, with more muscles and all. She would easily skip in and through the shaft, but he... it could possibly get a bit tight for him in there. ‘Ohhh... well. I hope you don’t get stuck in there. Otherwise…’ she pointed behind her, vaguely where the sewers were. ‘... there’s the other entry point.’ 

Frowning in almost an instant, Clint tilted his head almost offended that she hadn’t considered that he was a fair bit larger than her both in height and in frame. “Well I’m glad you were thinking of me when you planned this trip,” He grumbled as he glanced in the general direction she was pointing in and had decided for himself that he would just take the risk with the vents. But it seemed that Natasha wasn’t even going to wait for him before as soon as he looked back she was already halfway down the vents. “And thanks for waiting,” He said before patiently waiting for her to get far enough into the vents so he could follow. After what felt like at least a solid minute, Clint was hot on her tail as he literally squeezed himself through the vents which was much easier said than done as in some tighter areas of the vents his shoulders got trapped meaning he really had to scramble his way through to be able to fit.

After a couple of minutes of crawling, he eventually spotted the silhouette of Natasha who seemed to be peering into a vent that peered down into the corridor down below. Clint moved a little closer so that he was practically leaning over her shoulder, as neither of them exactly had a lot of room, to begin with, all while looking down in the vent. “You know next time, take some consideration for others,” He groaned as he smashed his head into the vent above. The sudden noise called Natasha to snap her head back to glare at Clint as he had made so much noise. ‘You know I should have brought Bruce. At least he wouldn’t whine about everything,’ Nat mumbled as she rolled her eyes. “Oh come on we both know that is not true in the slightest. Bruce would total-” Clint began to ramble on but was quickly cut off by Nat as she pressed her finger against his lips, completely taking him by surprise. 

‘I am sorry that I did not think about the possibility of a special agent being not fit. Maybe you should exercise less of this…’ Natasha reached her arm out, placing a finger on his lips. ‘... but more of this.’ Her finger slowly glided downwards, over his chin and throat until it stopped at the height of his lungs, where she put some more pressure on it.

Swallowing harshly he couldn’t help but stare at her while she spoke quietly. He resisted the urge to say anything, which was a harder task than it would seem to most. Clint obviously knew that she was only teasing, but then again it seemed that there was definitely something underlying her actions. Though he wasn’t going to question her, especially when he didn’t mind in the slightest. Parting his lips slightly, he stopped himself from saying another word and just allowed his eyes to drift to the finger that was now jabbing into his chest. Nodding, he couldn’t help but smile slightly at her. Sometimes he became completely baffled by her, as he found himself at a loss for words which for Clint was a rarity.

Moving back a little, he gave her all the room that she would need to be able to remove the grate and actually descend down into the corridor below. For a moment, Clint just stared at the spot that she had just been in, still lost in his thoughts. Such a simple action had shook him to his core, for reasons he wasn’t exactly comfortable delving into just yet. Taking in a deep breath and shaking his head slightly, he waited another second before reaching outwards and placed his hands on either side of the gap. Lifting up his feet under his body he carefully slotted himself through the gap before dropping down landing on one of his knees and his leg. That should have reduced the amount of noise made by the drop.

With both agents now officially inside the KGB facility, the two had to take extra precautions because the last thing they needed right now was a barrage of armed men hot on their tail. All it really meant was that Clint just had to keep his trap shut and Natasha … well she just had to do what she was best at as well as keeping Barton in check which was a job in itself. Sadly it seemed that she was the one few people that could actually do it, meaning more often than not she would be paired with him. Which at first was an awful experience, the non stop chatter and the dozens of jokes that make no sense began to drive her insane. 

That was until she really got to know Clint Barton - not the mask he usually hid behind. The real Clint was actually very nice and extremely loyal. It was only at this point Natasha had realised this might be the only chance she would get to form a proper and meaningful friendship. So while she put up with his chatter and shenanigans, it was because she knew it was all worth it for the person underneath all the crap. Or at least that was what she was telling herself. 

Natasha blinked a couple of times before trying to focus on the mission at hand, afterall she could have all the time in the world to think about him later on … not that she was going to anyway. Rushing to the wall, she peeked around the corner where she saw the guards leaving at. A quick glance at her watch told her the time, the time where the guards should change. Their window opened for the couple minutes she explained earlier. Once she heard Clint coming closer, she held a hand out at his direction, telling him to wait a little longer before they could move on. She much rather be safe than sorry.

Clint on the other hand was in a completely different headspace. The lack of communication was putting him on the edge slightly, not sure exactly what was going to happen next. Of course, he was aware of what their plan was but that didn’t mean they would be able to follow it to a tea. There were things that could go wrong, things that either agent may not have considered yet. Clint patiently waited, knowing that the time to strike could happen in literally a moments notice he had to be ready to run because any delayed reaction cost him either his own life or Natashas and that was something he wasn’t willing to risk. Rubbing the side of his jaw he kept his body pressed firmly back against the wall, not wanting for any part of his body to be seen by anyone who happened to be prying nearby.

Just by looking at her face, Clint could tell that she was working out what their next move was going to be. He had hoped she knew her way around here or at least had a rough idea of where the server room was - as that was where he assumed all her data was going to be kept. That was if they only had digital copies if they had paper copies that would be a whole other issue that needed to be addressed. Though that being said it wasn’t very often that people used paper copies for anything. It was still something that he was going to keep in mind as their mission progressed. 

By the looks of things Natasha was preparing to move on, so he had to keep focus. It was weird, he usually had crystal clear focus especially when it came to missions but this time there was something different. It was almost as if he was overthinking every thought if that was even possible. All he could hope for was a clean run. In and out. That was all that they needed to do. There would be no need for any excessive fighting after all this was supposed to be a stealth mission, something that was both agents forte.

And just as Clint had predicted, in the blink of the key Natasha had successfully crossed the path in which the camera covered just as it turned away from them meaning now was as good time as ever to do so. Not expecting to leave just at that moment, Clint was just a little late meaning that there was a fair chance he wasn’t going to make it before the camera’s line of sights swung back towards where he was currently stood. It was going to be a very close one, meaning that Clint literally had to throw himself at the floor hoping that it wouldn’t make a loud noise and also actually allow him to escape the sight of the camera. Rolling onto his back he let out a deep breath as he stared up at the other agent. A lazy grin replaced the blank look on his face before he got himself to stand back up, to which the other agent just quirked her eyebrow up at him before helping him get back onto his feet. A child would grow into a man, but you couldn’t get it out of him completely.

‘Ok. Next one left and down till the end. Past the restroom and second door left is our room. No stops this time, we need to do this in one run or the cameras will catch us. Are you ready?’ The female agent turned her head once more to him, looking up to him as she asked her question. Actually, she did not need an answer at all. Ready or not, they only had one try, and it had to be used exactly now. ‘Yes? Then go.’ She whispered before rushing around the corner once more, taking the next turn left, and instantly rushed down till the end of the corridor.

With a blank look, Clint just stared at her - almost unaware of what had just happened. Looking around, he was almost double-checking that had just happened before letting out a breath of air as he quickly followed her. “Oh don’t bother waiting for me Nat, why on Earth would you do that?” He mumbled to himself as he broke out into a sprint. 

After a minute or so of running, Natasha suddenly dropped to her knees and slid across the floor in order to avoid being seen through the window that was panelled into the wall. Forcing himself to a stop, Clint waited until the other had safely gotten across the window until he did the same sort of thing as he backed up a couple of steps before breaking out into a sprint and dropped down to his side allowing his body to perfectly glide across the floor until he had successfully passed. As soon as he had flown by the window, he got back on his feet before breaking out into a run.

Though this time rather than his pure focus being on what their next step would be, he was far too occupied in thinking how badass the two of them must have just looked. But good things never lasted, especially in his line of work because all of a sudden he had collided with a solid object. Frowning, he parted his lips in order to question what on Earth that could have been before he lifted his head up to be met with the back of Natasha who had been frozen in her spot. Gulping, he peered past her shoulders only to see why she had stopped. 

In front of the two stood a guard who was in the middle of changing his guard positions. Gnawing at the bottom of his lip, Clint knew that this was something he had to take care of. Carefully taking one step back Clint held his breath as he carefully reached into his pocket to reveal a small disc in the palm of his hands. The only good thing about working for S.H.I.E.L.D was the cool gadgets. Throwing it over Natashas shoulder, the disc attached itself to the guy’s shoulder sending electric waves through his tissue. Now here was where it got difficult. Quickly closing the space between them Clint dropped to his knees and slid past her and caught the guards body before it hit the floor muffling the noise of the body dropping. Now the only issue was that he was being crushed by the body. “U-Uh little help here” He groaned.

Natasha smirked at him as he lied there on the ground, holding her hand out to help him up a second time. Usually, a taunting comment would’ve followed, but this time she knew very well that he only saved the moment with his move. Pulling him back to his feet, she didn’t waste too much time on him and moved to the guard, waiting for the electric shocks to die down. Though she regretted not saying anything because as soon as he was back on his feet he uttered a witty comment. “What? Cat’s got your tongue?” The man teased.

Scoffing in his direction, Natasha just rolled her eyes before turning her attention to the man who was now on the floor. The poor guy was already knocked out, salvia hanging from the corners of his mouth and his veins puffy from the strain. Searching his body, she quickly pulled a card out his pocket and got back on her feet too, hurrying over to the server room. She held the card in front of the security system and watched the red light above turn green, the door unlocking with a silent clicking sound. A wide smile formed on Natasha’s lips before she pushed the door open and entered the room.

With the door now unlocked, both of the agents entered what they assumed was the server room. Glancing around it was clear that this was indeed the server room considering how cold the room was and also the fact that the walls were covered in servers. Though there was one computer in particular that would have access to the files that they needed to erase. 

Natasha was the first to approach the computer with Clint hot on her tail as he peered over her shoulder as she tapped away at the keys, trying her best to break past the firewall. Minutes past until finally, she came across a folder with her name attached to it. Grinning, she looked over her shoulder in order to nod at Clint. ‘That’s it.’ A silent whisper was shared with Clint to let him know that their efforts weren’t wasted. Now, she just had to delete them forever, delete her past and allow herself to start anew. To leave her past behind.

“You found it?” He asked in an excited manner, as he stood next to her looking at the screen. Placing a hand on her shoulder he squeezed it softly as he nodded “Make sure you delete everything that might even contain your name, who knows what they’ll be able to pin on you still.” He said quietly. This was it, what they had come for. A single press of a button and it was going to be over. Clint couldn’t put any words to his thoughts as he felt a surge of happiness for the other agent rise in his chest. They could leave this place never having to look back again. She would finally be free.

Nodding slightly, Natasha didn’t take her eyes off of the screen as she scanned through the document very briefly. ‘It’s all here. I can delete it all and it’ll be gone forever,’ She mumbled quietly. Listening to what Clint was saying, the man had a point. Her name could be plastered all over the place, not just in this file. So rather than deleting just that file, she typed her name into the search bar to see what results she would get back but what she found made her sick to the core. 

264 confirmed missions, 264 confirmed deaths. Like the guard they just overwhelmed, Natasha stood there frozen to the spot, paralyzed by the number on the screen.

‘Can you check on the door real quick?’ The redhead asked in a rather serious tone, gulping once to swallow the truth. She was a killer, a murderer to be honest, and deleting those files... would it make up for everything she’s done? So many names she didn’t even have a clue about, she didn’t even know that there were so many. In past, those meant nothing to her. She simply pulled the trigger and cruelly killed those people. Day after day, without thinking. That’s how she’d been raised, that’s what she’d been trained for.

‘Please?’ She asked once again as she saw the look of confusion that had taken over Clint’s face. He didn’t ask why but instead just nodded as he took a step back and walked towards the door. It was only fair if he respected her wishes and privacy so he did exactly as he was told as he moved towards the door and peered outside the small window that had been built into it.

With Clint now at the door and looking the other way, this was her chance to finally know everything. Understand all the things she had done, all the people she had killed because it was already far too late for her to right those wrongs. But she couldn’t go through all those files now, especially with Clint here because he would make sure that she’d delete it. Removing a thumb drive from her pocket, she quickly plugged it into the computer and began to download everything. Everything that even mentioned her name because she wanted to know it all. It only took a couple of minutes until the entirety of her database had been uploaded onto her thumb drive. She was done. But Clint didn’t need to know what she had done so as far as he knew she had deleted everything and that was it. 

Now that she was done, she walked over to Clint and gave him a pat on the shoulder letting him know that she was all done. “Alright let’s get moving, I don’t want to be stuck here any longer than we have to be,” Clint said with a small smile. There was something else going on here but he couldn’t put his finger down on it. Like something he had missed but the two agents had already been through enough as it was, there was no need for further questioning. For now, he would keep his mouth shut, ask questions later when they were in a much less life-threatening situation.

Opening the door, he held it open for Natasha before leaving the server room himself. ‘Oh wow, so maybe you really are a gentleman hm?’ Natasha teased with a smirk before heading out of the room. “Right so we had a pretty detailed plan on getting in, I’m hoping you had a plan to get us the hell out of here,” Clint said shutting the door behind him. “I swear to god if you make me crawl through those vents again…” He said wincing at the thought. Well, it could have been worse. “Or the sewers? Tasha, please don’t tell me we are going through the sewers” He grumbled, he sometimes really was just like a small whiny child. Though the unhappy face was soon taken away by a smile knowing eventually they’d manage to get out of here. 

‘We have to use one to get in and the other to get out. Since the vents are already used, I’m afraid we have to use the sewers. But don’t worry. Once we’re out there’ll be a nice shower waiting for us.’ She nodded, her eyes widening as she heard her own words echoing through her mind once again. ‘One after the other, obviously…’ Natasha blushed slightly, then took a step over the guard and turned around the corner to head towards their way into the sewers.

“If you had told me that this mission would have entailed me having to A. crawl through spaces that are far too small for someone like myself and B. having to wade through literal sewage I may have reconsidered. You are lucky I like you, Romanoff.” Clint said as he rolled his eyes but he couldn’t keep up his facade for much longer so broke it with a smile and a shake of his head. But his face quickly changed at the mention of a shower. “Oh will there now?” Clint asked his eyebrow quirking up with curiosity, a small grin growing on his lips as he waited for the realisation of the meaning behind her words. A pink dusting on her cheeks, followed by another commenting left Clint smirking as he tilted his head up to side slightly. “Are you sure about that? I’d happily take you up on that offer Romanoff” Clint said smirking as he winked at her teasingly. He was joking … was he?

Natasha didn’t have time to properly respond to Clint’s comment, though it was probably best if she didn’t, considering she didn’t even know where to begin. So she quickly turned the corner in an attempt to get away from him and whatever situation that would lead to. Only moments after she took said turn, almost in front of the restroom, her heart stopped, and so did her movement. The door opened and out stepped three newly arrived guards, all clad in their uniforms and weapons of choice. This time there would be no saving from Clint, she didn’t think he’d have this many shockers with him. Clearing her throat, the redhead tried to get their attention, so that they were facing her and focus on her. Three of them wouldn’t be a problem, three agents would be even more so.

‘Привет ребят!’ ‘Hey, guys!’ She smirked widely, clenching her hands to fists before she hurried into a sprint towards them. This time it was her turn to take them out. Plus, she didn’t have a good fight since... a week. Dodging the attack of the guard at the front, Natasha continued her sprint until she was close enough to slide on her knees, right through the legs of the second guard. He fell into a stumble, and it took her only one swift move of her foot to send him on all fours. Using him as some sort of trampoline, Natasha ran towards him and pushed herself off his back with her arms, her feet directed at the first guard’s head. Wrapping them around his neck, Natasha spun mid-air and used the momentum to send him face-first right into the wall which knocked him out.

The second guard was still on the ground, but the third just realized what was going on. He pulled out a taser like pistol, aiming it at the redhead who already read the situation. With a quick move, she pulled out two disc-like flashbangs and threw them on the ground right between his feet, blinding him and the guy on his fours behind him. Natasha dropped to the ground and kicked one of his legs aside, her fist connecting with his head once it hit the ground.

The last guy was a rather easy task as he was still on the ground. She just had to walk up to him and kick her shoe into his face to knock him out as well, leaving three unconscious guards behind, plus the one from earlier. Turning around she was met by the sight of Clint who was just stood there, with his jaw hanging open staring right at him. ‘That might have made too much noise I think we should-’ Natasha began to say before alarms began to blare through the facility. ‘-leave’ She quickly finished. Now they definitely had to hurry, or they would end up dead. Natasha spent no more time thinking and started running once more, following the way she made up as their escape route to the sewers. Clint just had to keep up.

“Eh there goes a stealth mission,” Clint said with a grin as he began to jog following her lead to where he assumed was the sewers. “Damn you really are set on getting me to work out aren’t you” He grumbled as he had to speed up, hearing the clattering of feet not too far from behind him. They eventually came to a stop meaning he knew that they were close to the sewers, the louder those footsteps got the more appealing the sewer was beginning to seem. To be perfectly honest that was something he never thought he would think, let alone actually mean it. “Right where next? I don’t exactly see an open sewer in front of me” Clint said in a rushed tone to her as he glanced around and all he saw was closed doors - not exactly the place he would assume to find any sewers.

Natasha looked from left to right, trying to remember the door that led to the pipe which was connected to the sewers. Two doors came into vision, but only one would be the right one. With her eyes closed, she tried to imagine the map in front of her, aware that guards were rushing towards them. She needed time to, at least ten seconds. Closer and closer came those steps, until she finally made a choice. “The right one.” She breathed out, rushing to the security panel. She held the card on top of it, the same way as she did earlier with the server room, but it remained locked. Again, and again, nothing happened as she slipped the card across it, getting enough of it. She pushed him to the side and pulled out her pistol firing once, twice, and a third time on it until the doors finally unlocked. She quickly pulled the door open, rushing further along the next hallway, long pipes forming to their sides. In the end, at least as she’d seen it from the map, would be a hatch to slip in the meter wide pipe and slide down into the sewers. Natasha did not waste any time and hurried to said spot, pulling it open with a quick pull. 

“Jeez, Nat you need to take some anger management classes” He muttered smiling just a little as he stood back and patiently waited until she had entered so he could quickly follow after her. Carefully watching her, he had a look of disgust plastered over his face as she pulled open the sewer door quickly filling the room with a foul stench. There was no way he was going to be the first one to go inside.

‘I guess ladies first?’ She lifted a brow, looking at him, but saw the guards running towards them from behind. She could’ve mistaken it, but they seemed to be armed with guns. Without thinking, the redhead jumped in the hatch and slid down the dark pipe, ignoring the disgusting smell that came from inside and got even more aggressive the closer she came to the sewers. By the end of it, the agent fell two or three meters and landed right in the waters, standing knee-deep in a mixture of water, waste and other fluids. Her suit and shoes would definitely need a clean-up too.

“Yep, of course, ladies first,” He said, not wanting to be the first to step foot in there. Taking in a deep breath the archer watched as Natasha slid into the hatch and without another thought, he did the same wishing to this little slide thing to end only to find himself knee-deep in what he could only describe as a liquid that he wished wasn’t slightly warm. Wading his way through the water he could just about make out the agent standing in front of him. “My god I am actually going to be sick.” He grumbled as he finally let the smell into his nostrils only to have himself trying to cough the smell out of his system which was practically impossible anyway. 

The sewer piping went on for a little while, much to Clint’s disapproval, until there was a similar sort of hatch right at the end. “Please tell me that’s our way out,” He said watching as Natasha carefully opened it and left. Grabbing either side of the hatch he pulled himself out into fresh air. “Never again!” He exclaimed as he breathed in lungfuls of nice air. While Clint would never admit this out loud but he was definitely a big baby when it came to anything remotely gross. Though Natasha could definitely see right through his lies and she liked to poke fun at him whenever she could.

‘You never know. Maybe our next S.H.I.E.L.D. mission includes the sewers…’ Nat chuckled, her eyes scanning the area around them. Silence filled the streets, the sound of a car here and there but nothing else. By the sounds of things the men behind them had given up, it was more than likely that they didn’t get paid enough to chase the two into the murky depths that were the sewers - something that they should really be lucky for because otherwise, they wouldn’t have made it out alive.

“Don’t even joke about that Nat! Because next thing I know Fury has assigned me to a mission that solely involves sewers I know it. I will only do that for you, not some stupid mission that means nothing” He grumbled as he tried to best to shake off any excess mud off of him before it would harden on his clothes. 

The redhead just laughed at Clint’s outburst as she shook her head, signalling for him to follow her to their parked car. ‘Let’s just get out of here, I’d rather not be scraping your insides off of the wall. And they will definitely be yours, not mine. We’re in my territory now.’


	3. Don't worry, You've got me now

With the main part of the mission now completed, the two agents quickly made their way through the back allies that they previously had traipsed through in order to get the hell out of the place. It was clear that neither agent really had any passion of sticking around any longer than they had too, especially considering the fact that they were both drenched in some questionable substances. The quicker they could get back to the small apartment Natasha had rented out the better, especially as there would be a hot shower waiting for them - just as Natasha had said earlier. Though probably not in the way Clint was thinking about, not like he thought that would ever happen anyway. 

A few minutes passed by and the two came across the car that they had parked only an hour ago. It was still in pristine condition as it was bathed in the shadows. That was lucky for them considering the area they were in wasn’t the nicest so a grand theft auto on their car wouldn’t exactly be much of a surprise.

Walking around the side of the car, Clint pulled open the door and clambered in. Quickly rolling down the windows he waited for Natasha to get in before doing up his seatbelt. Sinking back into the chair he sighed softly, the car bumped up and down gently as they drove further and further away from the base. Pulling up at apartment he undid he seatbelt but didn’t get out just yet. Turning his head slightly he looked at Natasha and opened his mouth to speak. “So what’s the plan now?” He asked looking at her. Were they going to stay for a while or leave straight away? Leaving would be the smart idea but he didn’t want to leave. Not just yet.

Natasha shrugged lightly, her grip loosening on the steering wheel. ‘I don’t know. My plan didn’t go that far. I guess we take a shower or bath, then see what’s next. I think no one followed us or saw the car, so we can either pack our stuff and leave right after or get some rest and leave in the morning. Either way works, the first would bring us back home earlier, the second would be way more relaxing. But that…’ She patted his shoulder and smiled before she opened her door and got out. ‘... is your decision. I made enough today.’

She waited for him to get out as well, then locked the car and strolled towards the entrance of the building where the apartment was. She unlocked the door and got in, heading upstairs, straight to their rented apartment. In front of it, Nat kicked off her shoes to prevent the disgusting smell from under her soles to fill the apartment, then unlocked the last door to their deserved break and refreshment.

“Leaving it up to me huh? Let’s hope you don’t regret that eh?” He said with a smile, reaching for the side door of the car. Grasping it he pulled it open and stepped outside, groaning slightly when he stood up straight. “Don’t think I’ll be falling asleep any time soon” He grumbled as he rubbed the small of his back. Clint patiently waited for Natasha to open the door before the two walked inside. As soon as he did he copied her by kicking off his shoes but he walked a little further in so he could switch on the little light bulb to give them some light. Grasping the back of his bow he lifted it up and over his head, gently resting it against the wall and then did the same with his quiver. He sometimes forgot how much his bow weighed, it wasn’t a wood one but rather it was made up of Carbon fibre which weighed a ton. 

The redhead headed inside, emptying her pockets on the table. The thumb drive was among it, but she didn’t care to hide it somewhere extra. It just lied there with her other gadgets. ‘So... you wanna go first? Or should I? I could take a little longer though…’ Her intention was to take a bath, which would take somewhat longer than a shower, what she assumed he would prefer. Leaving the decision to him, she pulled the zipper of her black suit a little lower to get rid of the somewhat tight fit, at least a bit, while waiting for his answer.

Turning around as Natasha spoke he parted his lips slightly but thought for a moment. “Uh, you can go ahead, I’m in no rush,” Clint said with a light smile. She deserved the time to kick back and relaxed, there was no doubt that today had been tough on her. “Yeah you go first, I’ll just wait down here for a bit maybe flick through the Russian TV. I would love to see the kind of whack stuff these guys come up with” He said with a chuckle before his eyes travelled down to what her hands were doing. It took him a couple of seconds to realise what he was looking at before his cheeks flushed red and he instantly looked away. 

A smile tugged at the corner of her lips as he said that she could be the first to clean up. He always did that around her, gave her the best position, the first try, anything that would give her an advantage. Natasha always wondered if he did that sort of thing for any woman or just her. Though she wasn’t exactly sure if she wanted to know the answer to that, she wasn’t sure what she would do with the answer. They’ve been through a lot together, such things bond two persons for a lifetime.‘My eyes are up here Barton,’ She scoffed before smirking at him with the shake of her head.

Breathing out he shook his head and turned around to walk into the small living room next door. “Just give me a shout when you are somewhat decent,” Clint said through the next room as he began to remove the items of his outfit that carried the smell of the sewer off of him.

Natasha turned around, walking backwards and shouted through the apartment so he would be able to hear her. “Just don’t complain to me later. I warned you...” She chuckled slightly, then turned once more and entered the bathroom, closing the door behind her. She turned on the water tap as soon as it was in reach, poured some soap in the tub and watched it slowly but surely getting filled up. 

Once it was at a decent amount, she turned it off and slowly stripped off her suit, revealing her skin inch after inch until she stood there just as God created her, dipping foot after foot in the hot water. Steam erupted from it, but the temperature was just perfect to relax and enjoy the warmth loosening up some tensions from this and past fights. As soon as her whole body was immersed in the water, Natasha released a sigh of relief from her lips, closed her eyes and rested there for a couple of minutes.

Clint smiled at her last comment, shaking his head as he heard a door further along the corridor open and then shut again. Glancing around the room he tried to look around for the clothes that he had arrived here in before remembering that they were upstairs. Making a quick trip up the stairs he gathered all of his belongs before bringing them all back down into the living room. Deciding that he literally couldn’t stand the awful stench radiating from his clothes, piece by piece he removed his suit from his body leaving him in his undershirt and boxer shorts. Carefully folding them up he placed them in a plastic bag and tied them up dumping them in the corner so he could wash them later on. Of course, the smell still stayed on his skin for the time being but it was better than what he originally smelt like. 

While waiting for Natasha to clean up Clint crashed down onto the sofa and grasped the remote that went with one of the smallest television sets he had ever lay his eyes on. Switching it on, it took him a couple of minutes to get to bearings of how it worked but he eventually managed to turn it to a channel. Though as soon as he did it seemed like the volume was on max and whatever it was playing was blasting through the apartment. “Shit shit shit,” He muttered under his breath as he quickly tried to turn it down but he was pretty sure everyone in a fifty-foot radius had heard that. Sighing softly he flicked through the channels until he found something that wasn’t in black and white. While he didn’t understand what the hell they were saying, the visual was enough to keep him entertained.

The time of relaxing was over when she heard the voice of a russian moderator blast through the whole apartment, a quick reminder that she wasn’t alone, and that someone else was also waiting for their turn. She could have more of this at home, now she should just get cleaned and leave the bathroom to him. 

Scrubbing her body and washing her hair three or four times, she eventually got out of the tub and dried her body with a towel, using another new one to tie it around her body. The redhead opened the plug hole to let the dirty water escape the tub, then grabbed her things and headed out to the hallway barefoot. Natasha dropped her suit in a bag at the entrance, then headed to the living room, cleaning her ears with two cotton sticks as she entered.

Clint was so absorbed in this Russian tv that he had stumbled across, he didn’t even hear the door open. He was only aware that Natasha had joined him back in the living room when he felt her eyes on him. Moving his eyes away from the bright screen his eyes were drawn to, he turned his head to look at her as she sat back down next to him. Her hair was now damp and smelled a hell of a lot nicer than he did.

‘Do you even understand a single word? The bathroom is free, if you still care to get that smell off your body and out of your hair.’ She could smell it even better now that she did not smell like that anymore, her expression changing to one of slight disgust. ‘Please do…’ Bringing another but smaller towel she brought with her as well to her red locks, she rubbed them to dry her hair.

Glancing back at the television he shook his head. “Nope but I think I get the gist of the show, the man is trying to convince his wife not to leave him for this other dude. Rivetting stuff I tell ya.” He said with a grin. Standing up he grabbed his clothes and towel as he nodded. “You can’t turn your nose up at me! You’re the one who got us smelling like this” Clint said smiling. “I won’t be long.” He said before leaving the living room and walking into the bathroom that was still warm from the leftover steam of Natashas bath.  
Shutting the door behind him he dropped his clothes in the corner as well as his towel before kicking off the little remaining clothes he had. Leaning over the tub he twisted the tab which sent a stream of ice-cold water onto his head. Swearing he shivered as he pulled back, waiting for the water to heat up again. As soon the water was piping hot, jumped under the shower head. Sighing softly he rested his forehead against the cool tile as the hot water ran down his back. It was a nice feeling but it didn’t last for very long because he soon got to scrubbing down every part of his body wanting to never have to smell that sewer on his ever again. Once he had done so he turned off the shower and grabbed his towel quickly drying off his body before pulling on his clothes piece by piece.

As soon as Clint left, Natasha turned her head towards the tv screen and kept drying her hair as good as possible, watching the show but paying only half of her attention to it. The main reason she had kept it on was so that the apartment wasn’t filled with silence while Clint was showering. Her gaze drifted off to the table, spotting the thumb drive among her gadgets. She quickly got up and went over to the table, picking it up with her free hand before she walked over to her bag and hid it in there. That was not something she wanted him spotting, especially as it was not a conversation she was willing to have with him.

Since Clint was still in the bathroom, probably getting dressed since the water stopped running, Natasha decided to use to moment of privacy to get dressed too. She took new underwear, a shirt and some sweatpants from her bag and dropped the towel to the ground, getting dressed. Her still slightly damp hair was soon tied up to a messy bun, and only moments later Clint came walking back into the room. 

Grabbing what was left of his clothes and the towel, he left the bathroom and headed back into the living room where Natasha was. Folding up the damp towel he draped it over the radiator before grabbing his shirt and pulling it on. “Do I smell any better now?” He asked with a smile as his eyes glazed over Natasha and what she was wearing. 

Natasha was a sight to behold. It was a rarity to see her in such a relaxed form. No black leather insight but instead it was replaced with sweatpants and comfy clothes. Her hair pulled up into a loose bun, much different from how she usually wore it. Clint couldn’t help but stare for a moment or two. She was literally the depiction of natural beauty, nothing could convince him otherwise. But Clint didn’t have the balls to say anything, so he just softly smiled before joining her on the couch. “You know I would offer to cook something if there were actually food here. I could really go for something carb-heavy around about now” Clint said smiling as he allowed his body to sink back into the comfort of the sofa. Stretching his arms out his eyes flickered between Natasha and the tv screen before finally settling on the screen.

Natasha looked over to him and leaned a bit closer to smell his hair, inhaling deeply through her nostrils which caused a light smile to appear on her lips once more. ‘Much better. Like a sweet flower,’ She teased, followed by a soft chuckle. Turning her head she thought about what he was saying, Natasha was hungry as well, so some dinner would be the perfect reward for the perfectly completed mission. ‘I’m so sorry. I didn’t have enough time to go grocery shopping before… It didn’t occur to me that you were planning on wining and dining me’ She scoffed for a moment, looking in a sarcastic apologetical way at him.

‘I’m hungry too though. I think there’s a pizzeria not too far away from here or a burger bar. We could order something... I leave the decision of what up to you. Oh, by the way, I assume we stay overnight?’ He hadn’t yet answered her question from earlier, but regarding the calmness he radiated, she could only think it would be like that.

“A sweet flower huh? I’m definitely taking that as a compliment.” He said with a grin as he brushed his fingers through his short, spiky hair. Looping his arm over the back of the sofa he rested his head back and looked up at the ceiling. It wasn’t a very pretty sight as it was covered in all sorts of different coloured stains. Tilting his head to the side he laughed as he shook his head. “I can’t believe you not thinking this far ahead. First not anticipating that my very broad shoulders wouldn’t fit in the vents and now you’re telling me that you didn’t get food! What kind of an agent are you!” He exclaimed in fake disappointment though it was soon gone at the mention of pizza. 

‘Well, you better get used to it because you won’t get much more in future.” She got up from her spot on the couch and walked over to the kitchen, searching through a pile of flyers she already spotted earlier today. ‘And I’m the kind of agent who doesn’t get fat,’ She teased with a light eye roll before settling back on the couch with the flyer.

“Did I hear pizza? If so we are getting pizza.” He said instantly sitting up in his seat. His stomach grumbled rather loudly at even the thought of consuming proper food. “Oh right yeah. I mean a sleepover with you? Wouldn’t miss out on that opportunity for the world,” He said with a lazy smile. 

She sat back down and patted his stomach playfully. ‘But there’s nothing wrong with some extra pounds. I’m fine with staying here for the night. Would’ve been quite stressful to leave already,’ Placing the phone on the coffee table, she opened the menu and skipped through it, picking number 7 for herself, then held the piece of paper out for him to grab. Though, seeing the Cyrillic script, she remembered he wasn’t that good in Russian and would likely need some help. This was evident when he began to pull faces as he stared at the paper before looking up at her. “You know my studies in Russian didn’t exactly cover pizza toppings” He teased with a smile which only earned him an eye roll. Natasha pulled it back to her and went through the numbers, reading out loud everything until he’d settle for a meal to pick. ‘Margherita, salami, ham, …’ One by one she listed off the different pizza types until he pointed at the one he wanted.

Once she knew what they bothy wanted, she dialled the number of the pizzeria and ordered it to their address, ending the call after. The agent opened the back of the phone, pulling out the SIM card, she broke it into two halves and put a new one in, pushing it back on the table. ‘20 minutes…’ Nat mumbled, propping up her head, on one hand, her arm rested on the backrest of the couch. Now they just had to wait, which might be an even harder task than the mission before.

“Better safe than sorry eh? I bet the KGB is checking in on all the phone calls a pizza place is getting” He teased with a smile as he pushed himself to sit upright. Reaching forwards, he grasped the TV remote before switching off the television. He had no idea what was happening anymore and the language barrier was beginning to piss him off. Not to mention the very sexist vibes he was getting from the show. “I didn’t really understand what was happening but from the gist of things it seemed kinda sexist,” He mumbled before sinking back into the sofa and glancing back at her. “I would suggest a nice old chat but let’s be real you are not much of a talker,” Clint said with a grin as he tilted his head.

Natasha watched the screen turn black after he switched the television off, a smirk forming on her lips. If he only knew what they were talking about, he would’ve already turned it off much earlier. ‘Oh? Are you no longer up to get some tips on how to not behave in a relationship? I mean... not that you would need it. Who’d date a special agent at all?’ The redhead lifted her brow, secretly implying her own sad fate too. The last years were rather lonely in terms of her love life. She was way too busy doing her job, and a relationship would only hold her back in efficiency. She’d be vulnerable if someone found out about it, and that... she couldn’t be. 

‘Hey, I’m talkative if I want to.’ Natasha faked to be hurt by his slight offence with a frown, holding her hand to her chest. ‘Ok, then... what do you want to talk about, Barton? The efficiency of your work? Trust me, that won’t be enjoyable for you.’ She teased back, grinning.

“I do not need any advice from a show. I’ll have you know that I am an absolute gentleman when it comes to relationships!” Clint exclaimed, sitting back down in his spot. Bringing his legs up onto the couch with him he crossed his legs underneath his body. “I am honestly quite offended Natasha” He huffed out as he rolled his head back to rest against the cushions, a small smile forming at his lips. 

“Firstly who are you to say I don’t have a girlfriend? Well, I can assure you that reason that I don’t isn’t that I’m a secret agent.” He said with a smug look on his face before realising that meant it something else. “Not that I’m insinuating a bad boyfriend or anything” He quickly corrected himself. “And secondly I would so date a secret agent. You know how cool that would be?” He said but knowing the reasoning behind why it wasn’t the best idea. Clint was purposefully choosing his words carefully because he had in fact already had past relations with so-called secret relations, one of which lasted for years but that wasn’t something he was ready to dump onto Natasha just yet. “Wouldn’t you?” He asked tilting his head slightly smiling at her.

Laughing at Clint, she shook her head knowing that he was lying. ‘Well, I can tell you don’t have a girlfriend. Which girlfriend would let her boyfriend travel to Russia, with another woman, for a mission that’s not work? And is that so? What would be the reason then? Did you not find the right one yet? Plenty of fish in the sea?’ She smirked slightly, her brow still lifted. Clint Barton and a girlfriend. What a sight that would be. That woman clearly had to be deaf, or her ears would be bleeding every single evening. Natasha didn’t talk too much, but Clint still managed to babble for hours if one let him. 

‘Dating a secret agent? I don’t know... would that make sense at all? I mean, it would surely be quite exciting and all but... I think it needs two opposites in a relationship. If one is out all day, doing his mission, he or she wants to come home to their partner, right? But with two agents... I don’t know if that would be possible. You know, every time on demand... except they both work at the same time. That could work.’

She didn’t have a clear answer to his question at all. Dating another agent would be super exciting, nothing to hide and all, but also more dangerous. She’d gave to find out. ‘I think I would... at least one time. To try it out’ The redhead shrugged slightly, pulling her legs in to sit cross-legged.

Clint pursed his lips slightly as he thought about what she was saying in a little more depth. “I guess that is true, yeah but at least she would understand the reason behind certain actions.” He said, at this point, he was just speaking out loud his thoughts as they drifted into his mind. A small smile made it’s way to his lips as he tilted his head to look at Natasha again. “To me, it sounds like you are trying to convince me not to get a girlfriend. Any reason for that?” Clint teased with a smirk on his lips. 

Natasha furrowed her eyebrows, caught off guard by his question. She quickly turned her gaze off of him and stared down, a soft shade of red adorning her cheeks. ‘No... why would I?’ She shook her head slightly, furrowing her brows to distract from her embarrassing reaction that followed to his rather normal question. 

Usually, she was the tough one. Easily playing anyone she had to, seducing men like a hobby just to get the information and what more, but with Clint it was like he put a blockade between her and her skills. She could, except for a few times, not fool him at all. But it wasn’t because he did something to stop her from doing so, as if he’d actively try to prevent it. No. Natasha couldn’t even start doing her magic on him. Like now, she blushed. But why? There was literally no reason for it except... no. Again, she shook her head in her own thoughts and kept facing down. ‘I’m trying to tell you to get the right one and not just the next best that catches your attention. Not many will understand your job and why you do it. That’s all... nothing else.’

Clint’s focus switched back to the light blush on his cheek and he couldn’t help but smirk. The Black Widow herself blushing at something he had said. He wasn’t going to ruin the moment by making some snippy comment but rather just keeping it to himself. Shrugging at her quick answer he leant back into the sofa, pretending that he wasn’t just staring at her. “I dunno, just seemed like you were trying to discourage me from it,” Clint said softly. Brushing his fingertips on the underside of his jaw he tried to get a read on her but even when she was relaxed it was almost impossible to tell what was going through that mind of hers.

He didn’t dwell on that though but rather he went back to address the other comment she made, the one about how she could hold a conversation and asked him about whatever he wanted to talk about. “Oh, can you now? I want to hear the last time we had a conversation that lasted longer a minute. AND that wasn’t about the mission stuff!” Clint asked as he sat up straight, a grin plastered over his face. “Wow, you wanna talk about me? I mean not to be modest or anything but I don’t blame you.” He said. 

‘Excuse me? We had several conversations that lasted longer than a minute without being about a mission. Like…’ Natasha paused, trying to remember any conversation the two had, but she could only remember those about missions, not the ones about other topics. If there were such conversations at all. ‘I can’t remember one specific yet but we definitely had enough.’ She waved her hand and leaned forward, resting her elbows on her legs.

“Aha! I knew it. You cannot name a single conversation we’ve had that isn’t about work. I’m not sure whether I should be more impressed in myself or more ashamed of our friendship, to be honest” He exclaimed as he crossed his arms over his chest. “You can never get enough of me, the look on your face can tell me that much. You would probably die without me.” He said in an overdramatic tone. Scoffing, Natasha rose from her seat and gradually began to make her way towards the kitchen before speaking. ‘You’re right, I can’t get enough of you. Every time you’re gone I feel so empty, almost lost. And when I have you back my life finally makes sense again…’ She rolled her eyes slightly while facing away from him, a small smile forming on her lips. She was obviously just teasing, but who knew if he’d get that. Or if he even wanted to.

“I bet you can’t stop gushing about how I saved your ass earlier.” He called out laughing a little as his eyes trailed towards where she was going. “But no I meant like normal people things. Like uh, for example, what your binge-watching at the moment or some small talk. Let’s start with your favourite colour but I swear to god Tasha if you black I am kicking you out” Clint said smiling. It felt nice to be at ease with his friend, not having to worry about an underlying mission of the conversation but actually just talk about nothing and everything. It was rare they had chances like this so he was more than happy to grasp it.

Natasha almost burst out into laughter, holding her breath for a short moment before she stuck her head out of the kitchen. ‘Gushing?! You wish. If there’s someone who should gush it’s you, about me giving you the opportunity to have this moment. I was afraid your morale would lower if I did everything. That’s how much I care for you.’ She pointed her tongue at him for a simple second, listening to his suggestion for a conversation. ‘My favourite colour is not black. Black simply suits me best, and it’s perfect for missions in the dark. Also, don’t tell me you don’t like the view. I caught you staring more than once…’ She grinned before disappearing back into the.

“I’m glad to hear you actually care for me, some actions tonight would have begged to differ” Clint teased with a small grin. Raising his eyebrows he felt heat rush to his cheeks, giving them a slight red tone as he parted his lips slightly only for non-coherent words to fall out. He was pretty glad Natasha was no longer in the room so she couldn’t see his embarrassed face. “I-Uh….. I mean yeah. Of course, you look good in black? I mean who doesn’t right? And it wasn’t like I was staring at you or anything but even if I did you have no proof of that” He said quickly in a jumbled manner, very happy to move onto the next topic of conversation.

Laughter came from the kitchen but Natasha left it at that, she’d put him through enough already. Searching through some of the cupboards, she eventually stumbled across a bottle of Vodka and a bottle of wine. The wine looked a little worse for wear but she didn’t think Clint would throw up too much of a fuss. With the two bottles in hand, she moved to the next cupboard and sourced two glasses for them before heading back into the living room. Raising up the bottles she tilted her head before speaking. ‘Up for some drinks?’ She asked, not waiting for his response before setting them down, Clint nodded so she assumed he was content with that idea.

‘And to actually answer your question from earlier, my favourite colour is blue. Like the ocean. Let me guess, yours is green. Green like that of this silly hero from this superhero team around Superman. How’s he called again? Green Arrow?’ Natasha said as she took a seat and began to pour, releasing a soft sigh from her lips. ‘My turn to ask a question … If you had the opportunity to start over again. From zero. Like, you could choose your job again, the people you know, friends, anything. What would you do?’ This question was a little more private than the colour one, but he could simply refuse to answer if he didn’t feel like it. She leant her head to the side, her cheek resting on the cushion as she looked at him, waiting for an answer.

Leaning forward in his seat, he frowned ever so slightly at the idea of alcohol. As of recent, he had been trying his best to avoid it but a drink or two couldn’t do him too much harm right? And at least this time he wouldn’t be drinking alone so what was the worst that could happen? He didn’t answer his own question as he carefully watched as Natasha poured them out vodka, something that wasn’t his drink of choice but he’d have it nonetheless. Though before he could even taste the drink, she had wrongly accused him of his favourite colour as well as finally answering his earlier question.

“Never took you for a blue type of person Romanoff but now I can totally see it. It’s a nice colour” He said with a smile but that soon vanished as she suggested his favourite colour. “Say what now? Don’t ever bring up the Green Arrow around me. That guy is a total jackass and just for the record, I am WAY cooler than him. I mean wow his name is so creative. But no my favourite colour is purple. You know back in the day I used to run around in purple spandex, that is one of my closely guarded secrets but let me tell you. My ass looked pretty good in that suit I have to admit” Clint said with a smirk. 

‘I would’ve loved to see you in that purple suit, especially your backside. You don’t have some photos of that time saved by accident, do you?’ Natasha said with a smirk which only caused Clint to laugh as he shrugged his shoulders. “I may or may not still have it …. And depending on how nice you are to me will determine whether or not I decide to share it,” Clint scoffed.

Pausing for a moment, Clint stared at the semi-full glass in front of him as he tried to think of an answer to her question. Eventually, he broke the silence. “You know I’m not completely sure but back when I was a kid I loved nature and everything it had to offer. Maybe something nice and simple away from civilisation? Running a ranch or even getting into woodwork you know? I don’t know I just feel like I was never meant to be the complicated man I am today. That being said I don’t really know what kind of life that would be without you” Clint said, finally coming to a pause after his last sentence. 

Glancing over at Natasha he shrugged once again before attempting a small smile. “What about you? I bet this isn’t really what you wanted.” He asked, really wanting to know the answer. He just wanted to take the opportunity to get to know his friend best as he could because who knew if they’d ever had such a personal moment together again.

A small smile appeared on the redhead’s lips as he answered her question. He and a ranch, she could definitely see him in this life. A calm place to live at with his family, far away from stealth missions, guns and whatever their current life consisted of. _” What about you? I bet this isn’t really what you wanted.”_ Oh, it definitely wasn’t what she wanted. Or at least she thought so. Most of her memories before the Red Room were just vague snippets from a life she could barely remember. 

‘I don’t think it’s what I wanted, but then... I can’t really remember that much. Honestly, I don’t know what I’d do if I could pick anything. I only know this life, this work, and I don’t think I could settle down that easily. At least not now. That’s simply not in my nature.’ Natasha always thought she needed the action, the adrenaline that rushed through her veins when she fought with her enemies. She needed that, and no one could take that away from her. No one who didn’t know her perfectly well. Then again, maybe everything she needed was someone who’d help her settle down because she alone could never succeed in such a thing. ‘I’ll probably still go on missions in my seventies for Fury’s kid…’ She chuckled softly, a slightly sad undertone in her voice. ‘So... special agent it is for me. No ranch.’

Frowning slightly, Clint lifted his head in order to meet her gaze. What she was saying was quite sad but understandably the reality they would eventually be faced with. “Gee until your 70 huh? Well looks like I’m in for the long run. Don’t be thinking I’m going to let you run around on your own still. Nuh-Uh. I’ll be right there with you, even in my old age I’ll still be there to complain about everything don’t you worry” He said with a small smile. The conversation was slowly revealing the sad truth of a secret agents life and it was bringing down the whole atmosphere of the place and he couldn’t be having that.

A chuckle escaped her mouth once she imagined the scene in her head, two old people running around, beating up the bad guys. Maybe they wouldn’t be as flexible as in their younger years, but they would still make a great team. Some more firepower would surely make up for the lack of movement. But, this wasn’t what any woman really wanted to hear, at least no normal woman. A man telling her that he would still be by her side at seventy, this was all she could ask for if there wasn’t this simple but heavy weighing addition. To do missions. Who would be running around like this in their seventies, rather than sitting on the porch, watching your grandchildren play in the garden, and your children by their sides. Another thought that faltered her mood, because she would never be able to have that. But yet he didn’t know, no one knew. This was a secret she would possibly never tell anyone. 

Sighing softly, she reached forwards and picked up her glass of vodka before staring into it. There wasn’t exactly anything else she wanted to add, they had sort of left on a sour note - edging into sadness. Though while nothing immediately came to mind, she thought it would be best to possibly warn Clint about the alcohol. ‘This is Vodka, but not this thinned down American one, no... the real Russian one. Or... if this is nothing for you, very delicate tap water. Just be warned, it’s strong’ She said before lifting up her glass and waited for him to clink his against hers before speaking softly. ‘To us,’ She said in a mellow tone before tipping the liquid back into her mouth. 

Clint quickly followed her lead, grasping his glass before clinking the glass against hers. He watched as she downed it all in one, something he practically watched in awe. Swallowing, he glanced down at the clear liquid before doing the same. Or rather attempt to do the same because as soon as the harsh liquid touched the back of his throat he forced it down all while coughing and spluttering. 

Tensing up his upper body muscles he closed his eyes as he forced the harsh liquid down his throat before shuddering as he set down the glass. Half choking he began to speak again. “Wow .. Y-You weren’t kidding when you said it wasn’t like the thinned out stuff” He wheezed as he shuddered again feeling it burn his throat. “You Russians are crazy to drink that stuff, that was literal paint.” He grumbled as he sat back up trying to get the awful taste out of his mouth. “That was disgusting please never give that to me again.” He whined as he licked his lips which was a bad idea as it just brought the taste back into his mouth again.

‘Maybe you’re not as tough as you always say you are.’ She smirked, setting the glass back down on the table before sinking back into the couch.

A ring of the doorbell caused Clint to perk up. It could mean one of two things. One being pizza and the second being the KGB had found them. He really hoped it was pizza because he was starving. Jumping up he yelled, “I’ll get it!” A little more excitedly than he should’ve. Nearly tripping over his own feet he made his way into the front corridor and took in a deep breath. Turning around he grabbed one of the pistols that Natasha had cast aside just in case and tucked it into his jean waistband before opening the door. 

It was just the pizza man but he was speaking Russian. Nodding he pretended to understand as he took the boxes off of him but he looked like he still needed to be paid so he turned around and saw some notes on the side. Not fully understanding how the Russian money system worked so just handed him all that was there. The look on the guys face insinuated that he had just handed him like 200 dollars but it was too late as Clint just shut the door in his face. “Well good news is pizza is here. The bad news is I may or may not have given him all the money that was on the side” He informed Natasha as he set down the pizza on the table. “I think we should focus on the good news,” Clint said as he sat back down.

‘You did what? All of it? That was like... 200 dollars... maybe more. I hope it tastes good for that price…’ In America, she would’ve run out and tried to stop him, but here, with these circumstances, it might be better to just forget about it rather than alarm the whole neighbourhood. Natasha went back to the couch and waited for him to join her with the two cartons, her stomach rumbling slightly out of hunger. “When we’re back I expect you to order some pizza for me... this was all the money I had left for today and tomorrow.” She informed with a tiny tuck of her lips. Luckily for him, the pizza got more important to her than the loss of so much money, at least for now. Her attention lied on the pizza and only the pizza.

Reaching forward he flipped the lid of his pizza to be greeted with a friendly reminder of home, pizza. Not wasting a single second he grabbed the first slice of what looked like a salami and ham hybrid before bringing it to his lips and taking a very large bite of the pizza. Not caring how hot it was he forced down the first mouthful and quickly finished off his first slice. “Not the best pizza but to be honest I don’t care.” He muttered as he grabbed another slice wanting to literally inhale it.

“You know what I will buy you all the pizza in the world I don’t care,” Clint said as he continued to eat but was gradually slowing down now that his ravenous hunger was beginning to slow down the more he ate. “Well, it’s not the end of the world. Plus I have some bills in my wallet I have leftover from the airport just in case” He said as he got more comfortable in his seat. “Now just because the food is here doesn’t mean our conversation is over” Clint reminded her as he turned his head to look at her. 

Once the pizza had been placed in front of her, she opened the top of the carton, an enticing smell rose up to her nose, mesmerizing the redhead’s senses, and after lifting the first piece in her hand and to her mouth, it was done for her completely. Never had she ever craved something to eat this much in her life, her hunger almost unbearable. The pizza wasn’t the best, he was right, but at the moment that didn’t matter. Not a single bit. What mattered was their hunger, which got soothed by the pizza. Natasha hissed silently as a piece of salami got stuck on her lip, feeling as if it burned her skin. She quickly got rid of it and continued to eat, giving little to no attention to the heat. Once the first piece was eaten, she slowed down a bit, nodding as he offered to buy all the pizza that existed. ‘That sounds like a good way to make it up.” She smirked slightly, biting off the next bit of her second piece of pizza.

Pursing his lips he tried to think of something else for them to talk about. “Okay what about this: Fuck, Marry and Kill but the Avengers version. Myself excluded because obviously, I know what you pick me for” Clint said with a sort of smirk, impressed with himself almost.

Natasha widened her eyes slightly, stopping in the middle of chewing as she heard his idea to keep the former conversation going. She expected anything, really anything, but a game like this? Only Clint would be able to come up with something like this in exactly these situations. She glanced over to him, taking a few seconds to think about the idea. This game would at least prevent them from talking about their past. Now his past wasn’t something she did not want to talk about, but her own almost always made her uncomfortable. ‘What? Can’t live with the fact that I’d easily kill you?’ Natasha grinned playfully, finishing what she had left in her mouth, eventually swallowing it down. ‘Well, considering that the choice isn’t really that wide and by far not my type, I’ll try to be as honest as I can. So, for fucking someone, if I really had to, I think I’d go with Steve.’ She paused to see his reaction, trying to keep her laughter hidden.

Pushing himself up, he turned his body ninety degrees to look at her. The atmosphere was odd, it felt like he was a kid again at a sleepover talking to his friends about the cute girl in class ~ back when things were that simple of course. There was no one else he could have these sort of conversations with, maybe Stark but that was a whole other situation. The guy would probably take it far more seriously than it was meant to be taken as. “Woah hey now. I like to think that I would qualify for at least one of those other two choices thank you very much” Clint said with a huff.

“Now that is something I would like to know. What is your type? Do you even have a type? If so you have to tell me right now.” He said with a grin, already liking where this conversation was going. But now it was time to find out the truth and at first, he couldn’t believe his ears. “So you would want to take Rogers to bed with you huh? Now that is interesting … Very interesting. You know I would bet he would love to hear that” Clint teased with a grin. “Though I get it, blue eye, blonde hair you know it actually reminds me or someone else hm?” Clint said as he raised his eyebrows, lifting a hand he pointed to his hair and his eyes grinning as he did so.

‘My type?’ Natasha lifted a brow and looked down at her pizza, trying to think of an answer to that. Her type of man... there wasn’t actually a ‘type’ she was looking for, but some traits he should bring. ‘I don’t know about any type but he shouldn’t be whiny, should be able to understand some of my humour and, I may sound a bit smug but, he should have the looks, at least a bit. So you’re definitely out.’ She teased, chuckling. “If you tell Steve, I’ll kill you slowly, and with a lot of pain. Don’t you dare. This is a private game and I only tell you because I trust you. You’re a dead man if anything slips from these lips.’ Natasha pointed at his mouth, then continued to eat her pizza. The look on Clint’s face said it all, all while he pinched his fingers together before dragging them across his lips.

Huffing out a breath of air, she paused for a moment before answering the rest of his question. ‘Ok... so marry... umm.. you know we have a grandpa trapped in a bodybuilder’s body, a man who turns into a green beast when he gets angry, the god of thunder and a billionaire playboy who has a fetish for robots. The choice is pretty hard to make with all this husband material…’ 

With no one of them could she ever think to live in a relationship, or even worse, get married. For that, they were way too freaky, but she had to make a choice nevertheless. “... but if I had to choose, I think I’d go for Banner. He seems like the one who could make the best husband out of all of them. Don’t ask me why not Tony, he just... don’t ask.” She waved her hand dismissively. ‘Kill is easy. I don’t think anyone would be mad at me if I silence Thor’s mouth. No more bad jokes or dumb laughter. That should make a good trio. Rogers, Banner and Thor.’ She smirked, then took another bite from her pizza. 

“You would seriously want to marry Banner? The guy who can literally kill you in a second? I mean I get it though, he’s a sweet guy. Match made in heaven” He said in a sarcastic tone, the corner of his lips turning up into a smile but there was another feeling happening. Was he getting jealous? If so what was there to get jealous of? Absolutely nothing, his body had no idea what was happening. He had just probably eaten too much pizza. Yeah, that was it. Nothing else happening at all. Just pizza. His focus quickly switched back to the game as she mentioned that she would kill Thor. “Kill Thor? I mean yeah that makes sense. Though poor Tony, leaving him out of the mix. I’m sure he would have been happy for you to kill him. Great way to go out I think” Clint said smiling.

‘Hey, you can’t judge my picks, you don’t have to understand them. What about you? With the only woman of the roster removed from your people to pick, this should be fun. Natasha smirked, sitting up a bit more straight, eager to hear his line-up.

“Huh? Me? Oh god, I am nowhere near enough wasted for this” He grumbled as he gave in and leant forward to grasp the old bottle of wine. Popping off the cap he didn’t even bother with pouring it out as he just bought the bottle right up to his lips and took a heavy swig from it. “Now I’m ready,” He said as he breathed out, looking up at the ceiling to properly think about the question.

“Well, fuck is an obvious one. Stark clearly. I’ve heard good things from uh previous lovers if that’s what you wanna call them,” Clint said smirking slightly. “Now Marry hmmm I can definitely see Mr America being an excellent housewife. Y’know cleaning and all that jazz? Plus the man can cook and of course, I need to get me a man who can cook” Clint said before laughter erupted from his mouth. He couldn’t actually believe the words that were coming out of his mouth right now. Who would have known that this was the topic of conversation would take their night, no one would ever have thought two very professional agents would be talking about this. 

Bringing up the wine bottle to his lips, he tipped more of the sweet liquid into his mouth slowly but surely feel the effects of alcohol take control of his body. “Now. I would kill Thor. ONLY because I feel like he would understand y’know? We are bro’s and I just would feel bad for killing Bruce. Like I said he’s actually a pretty nice dude.” Clint said pretty happy with his line up. “So yeah, fuck Tony, marry Steve and kill Thor,” He said finally.

Natasha listened impatiently, giving him the moment to speak without interruptions from her side. Though, silent chuckles couldn’t be held back as he told his three men of choice. ‘Eww, Tony? What’s wrong with you? He’s like... no.’ The redhead furrowed her brows, reaching for the next slice. 

‘Yeah, Steve as a housewife, or houseman. I can imagine that like, he’d wear a dress too just to make you happy.’ She laughed, shaking her head softly and listened as he went on. At least in one matter, they made the same choices, but with different reasons. Natasha couldn’t stand the god’s often childish behaviour, his dumb jokes and the general ‘I’m a god’ attitude he radiated, so he would have to take the role of the killed Avenger. In reality, she would never be able to kill anyone from the team though, and Clint hopefully knew she was just joking. ‘So Thor is definitely going to die. That’s alright.’ Natasha nodded, releasing a deep sigh from her mouth.

“Captain America in a dress? Now that is something I would pay ungodly amounts of money to see. Do you think for the fourth of July I can convince him to make his country proud by dressing up in the USA themed dress?” Clint asked, a smirk creeping up into his lips. The image of Steve in a dress slowly drifted into his mind slowly bringing out bellows of laughter from him. This whole conversation was very amusing, he was glad he had decided to ask such a ‘risky’ question. “I’m glad we both agree on killing Thor though how exactly we would kill a God? That is another question. It would be hard but not impossible” He said thinking out loud.

“Mm best thing about being American, that sweet side of independence. What they don’t tell you is that independence is a hoax, it never existed!” Clint exclaimed as he shook his head. Alright so maybe he might have had a little too much to drink already but he couldn’t be faulted for that. Who knew how strong that stuff Russians call alcohol was because he was already beginning to feel full-on effects. “Yeah, how to kill a god. Do you think Thor will be upset if I ask how to kill him? I mean it is a really important question. Actually, I bet who knows the answer to it. Fury. He knows the answers to everything, not that I’m saying he knows everything which is basically what I just said but that guy knows how to look for information. I’m telling you I bet he even knows our favourite food. Why does he know that? I dunno! Ask him yourself” Clint rambled on and on. It was odd, Clint hadn’t been drunk around another person in what seemed like an age. When he was alone, he never acted like this - like a constant stream of words. It was an odd situation, to say the least. 

“I actually can’t believe we just had that conversation. I swear to God if you tell anyone I will personally be the one to try and kill you” Clint grumbled as he shook his head. He could already imagine how each Avenger would react to their choices, at least it would be some good conversation starter. “This isn’t that bad, you want any?” He asked as he lifted up the bottle offering her some.

‘Well, my lips are sealed as long as you don’t do anything dumb. It’s nice to have something like that up my sleeve though. Also, it was your idea, so stop whining.’ She shook her head at the offer of wine and leant forward to grab her glass of Vodka, taking another sip before she emptied it completely. 

Unfortunately, she wasn’t as used to it as she had been a couple of years ago when she still lived in Russia. More of it would probably knock her out sooner or later, so stepping on the break would be a good choice to make. ‘Enjoy your wine, I’ll stick to Vodka and tap water.’ Silence fell on both of them once more, but Natasha just warmed up to this conversation. Seeing no end in it yet, she tried to keep it alive, giving him another question. ‘If you could switch powers or abilities with one from the team, who would that be?’

Huffing out a breath of air, Clint quickly snapped his head around. “That’s not fair though, I do dumb stuff all the time. So what next time I accidentally rack away the weights wrong your gonna let this slip!” He exclaimed in a dramatic tone as he shook his head.

Bringing his legs up to his chest he looked over at Natasha, it seemed like she was thinking of a way to continue on their conversation which was odd to see. Usually, he was the one who had to carry their conversations, offering up a new subject every time it got quiet again. “Oh? Now that is a very good question…” He said as he paused, trying to think of who he would like to be. “Now even after saying I would kill him … It would probably be Thor. I mean who wouldn’t want to be a literal God who can fly around and stuff? A crazy person that is. The Hulk not so much, I’d rather not have to keep my anger in check and Mr ‘Murcia well we are practically the same person now anyway so what’s the point huh?” He said with a grin, taking yet another swig of the wine.

“Hm now, what about you? Would you like to have abilities at all? We are kind of lucky and cursed to just be plain old people I think.” He said. Sometimes he did feel a little useless though. There was only so much one guy with a bow and arrow could do whereas Stark had all that high-tech suit, Rogers the Frisbee, Thor the abilities of a god and Banner the ability to turn into a rage monster. He and Nat were sometimes just stuck on the sidelines and he hated just having to stand back and watch his friends fight where there is nothing he can do. Maybe it would be nice if he had some sort of powers that allowed him to have the upper hand.

‘I understand why you chose him, but I don’t think I’d be happy with a life like his. Well, I don’t know much about it but I can’t imagine everything is always wonderful with such strength and everything else. Actually, I wouldn’t pick anyone but if I really had to, I’d pick up Tony’s cleverness and his bank account for sure. Build some robots to do the work for me and have a happy life as a billionaire until the day I die. I think I could die in peace. Only his knowledge though, I don’t want to be an idiot with hair loss.’ She smirked, running a hand through her own hair.

“Wow, I can actually imagine you as a Tony Stark. Though you are much prettier than he is” He mumbled as he lifted the wine bottle up once again and took another sip from it. “You say that but I don’t think you’ll look that bad bald…” He said as he turned his head to squint at her trying his best to imagine her with no hair. “Nope nope nope. I retract my last statement. I would miss those red locks of yours.” Clint said fixing his gaze on her hair. 

Placing down the bottle on the table, he dropped his legs back to the floor so he could stand up. As he stood up the whole room began to swirl around before his eyes. His head felt very light and couldn’t think straight for the life of him. Falling back down onto the sofa he grinned. “Yep, that is exactly what I had intended to do. You sure you didn’t poison me? Because I’m feeling pretty poisoned right now. Would anyone even believe me if I told them that you had poisoned me? Wow-what a funny word poison. That just doesn’t seem to roll off the tongue in a normal way” Clint said ranting about seemingly nothing once again. “Uh, what’s the plan now? For um tomorrow?” He asked as he squeezed his eyes shut as he rubbed his face. “Do we have a flight booked or are we expected to swim?” He asked, his lips curling up at his own joke.

Natashas eyes wandered over to him as he talked about Tony and her, a soft grin forming on her lips. ‘When it comes to alcohol, you Americans definitely are weaklings. How did this tiny bit get you drunk already?’ There was no need to check his breath, his behaviour told everything she needed to know. As he took another swig of the bottle on the table and placed it right back there, the redhead instantly leaned forward and grabbed it, putting it next to her side of the couch, out of his reach.

“Psh I’m not drunk! I just had a little bit so no I am completely fine. Look I can prove it to you! I will hold up five fingers!” Clint exclaimed as he stretched out both of his hands before realising that was ten so he quickly dropped a hand. “Wait do thumbs even count as fingers? Because if they do well I am only holding up four fingers so I need to hold up another finger on my other hand” He babbled as he extended his other hand to show her the ‘five fingers’ he could proudly do. “Now could a drunk man do that? I think not so that is proof that I am as sober as can be. Now don’t call me weak because you know I actually have a very high tolerance to alcohol. You know this one time Thor even tried to get me to drink his Asgardian stuff and at first, I was like what the hell man no way I’m not gonna drink that stuff it’s gonna kill me but then he was like all charming or whatever so I had to drink it right? So, of course, he poured me out the smallest amount physically possible and I downed it in one and let me tell you that stuff would put your Russian vodka down to shame because that blew my head right off. Let me tell you now that had me pretty drunk like I’m telling you I could not walk!” Clint yelled with a big grin slapped over his face.

“No no you can’t do that! I wasn’t finished with that yet.” He whined as he tried to grab the bottle before she could but she was much faster than him and now it was too far for him to move and get it. “Alright fine but you can’t make me go to bed. I’m-Im not even tired…” He grumbled as he tried to fight the yawn that was coming but he couldn’t stop it quick enough. “Alright maybe I’m a little tired but it’s not even that late! Besides, there is no way you have physically force me into a bed … Actually I retract that statement because I think there are many ways you could get me into bed” Clint said with a smirk. “Plane so we are getting a plane? Do you know the time of the flight? Will there be food on the flight? Ooh, do you think they’ll give us free booze? Will we be flying privately or commerically probably commerically I doubt either of us has a private yet up our sleeves but that being said nothing would surprise me about you anymore.” Clint asked her the barrage of questions wanting to know the answer to each one.

‘Ok Barton, seems like you already had enough, huh? I think it’s best to go to bed now, for both of us. We have to get up early tomorrow, head to the airport and get the flight back to America in time. That’s the plan, and we don’t want to ruin it because of some alcohol, do we?’ When Clint got drunk, words streamed freely from his mouth, like a never-ending book. If no one stopped him, he’d possibly still sit here in the morning, talking about anything and everything. Natasha got up from her seat and held her hand out to help him up. It would probably be better to help him rather than letting him go on his own and let him fall.  
At first, Clint just stared at her hand, not wanting to go to bed yet but even in his semi-drunken state he knew it was probably best if they went to sleep. Extending out his hand he grabbed hers and used it to pull himself up and as he did so he felt the familiar woozy feeling. “Okay, maybe you were right.” He grumbled as he took a couple of steps before needing to support himself against the wall. Using Natasha as a support beam he eventually made it up the stairs without falling right back down which to him was quite the accomplishment, especially in his current state.

She actually wanted to let him choose to sleep on the couch or in the bed, then occupy the remaining opportunity for herself, but like this? It was probably not wise to let him sleep alone on the couch, so close to the exit. Who knew what ideas he’d get during the night. But, after checking out the couch, a night on it would probably cause massive back pain and more. So, for one night, they had to sleep in one bed. It couldn’t be that bad, hopefully. After pulling him up she guided him towards the bedroom, ignoring the fact that they actually had to go to the bathroom first. But, she wasn’t his mom, and one evening without brushing his teeth would ruin his white smile. Arriving at their destination, she let go of him and began to get ready for bed.

The two entered the bedroom which was where the sudden realisation of their only being one-bedroom hit him. Stumbling into the bedroom he turned around to look at Natasha with a grin. “I mean if you wanted to get me into bed you didn’t have to get me this drunk. I’m joking of course….” He teased before turning around once again.

Undoing the top button of his jeans he did his best to efficiently kick them off but it seemed a tougher challenge than he originally thought because keeping his balance was quite the issue. He eventually managed to get them off and turning to the bed it seemed much more appealing than the thought of having to stay awake. Stumbling towards the bed he also managed to pull off his shirt, no matter how many windows were open when he slept he always managed to overheat. Finally making it to the edge of the bed he collapsed face down into the soft mattress. Shutting his eyes for a second he felt like he could fall asleep then and there but for the moment he fought the urge.

Natasha quickly took off her pants and joined him in the bed, leaving a good amount of space between them. Setting the alarm for tomorrow morning, she turned over to him and smirked. ‘Headache or not, we gotta get up at 6. I’m looking forward to your wasted-in-the-morning face. Sleep well, Clint. And thank you again for today.’ She whispered that last part to herself, knowing he didn’t want her to thank him again, but she felt the urge to. With that, she turned off the lights and covered herself with the sheet, resting her head on the soft pillow, a silent sigh of relief escaping her lips. Only a safe journey back tomorrow and she’d be a free woman. She could finally start anew, completely.

“Wait did you say 6 am? I don’t think so, good luck dragging me out of bed then.” Clint grumbled as he turned his head to the side so he could look over at Natasha. He had just about caught onto what she had mumbled earlier on which caused him to dramatically sigh.

“If you thank me one more time I will actually throw you out of the window. Actually maybe not because I don’t think two stories is high enough. What’s the highest building you have ever been thrown out of? I’m pretty sure for me it was when we were on that mission in Dubai and that one guard really had it coming for me. Tackled me out of that mansion right into the pool. That was pretty cool though. Do you remember that? Wait was it even you that was there? I’m pretty sure it was. Oh yes, it was I remember now because you made that comment of I needed a towel after I dragged myself out of the pool completely soaked.” Clint babbled on once again, the idea of sleep had completely drifted from his mind once again and he didn’t sound like he was going to stop just yet.

‘Dubai... that was a good time. I was so mad we couldn’t stay longer... but that building was pretty high for sure. Umm.. I’m not quite sure if I remember the highest building I’ve been thrown out correctly but... does the top of a skyscraper count? I mean... I was wearing a parachute but I still got kicked down by some bad guys…’ Nat shrugged slightly, gazing to him while she inspected every feature of his face closely. 

Even though that the two of them were shrouded in darkness, she could still make out nearly every one of his facial features. From the freckles that dusted over his nose to the crinkles in his eyes that made themselves apparent when he smiled, every aspect of his face was now being revealed to her like never before. Natasha couldn’t help but smile at Clint, to which he quickly reciprocated even though he didn’t exactly know what they were smiling about.

‘Really, you should try to get some sleep though. I’m sure you’ll have a headache tomorrow... and don’t forget to put one leg out on the ground if it starts turning in your mind. Don’t want you to puke in the bed... or even on me.’ She shuddered at that thought, closing her eyes once more. 

“Well yeah but you still gave me the options so it’s still technically your fault. I mean if you had just said nothing I would be fine but noooooooooo you just wanted to get me drunk. I can see right through your lies!” Clint exclaimed a little too loudly considering that he was meant to be sleeping. Falling silent once again, he lifted his head up a little more so he could properly rest his head down on the pillow. “Ok Ok! I’ll make a deal with you. If I wake up before you .. You uhhhhhh owe me a favour something like a massage or buying me a new bow and if you wake up before me um the same goes.” He grumbled as he came to terms with the fact that they were going to have to wake up early despite his current condition. “Please don’t leave me here,” He said softly, sounding a little more desperate than he had intended to but he meant it. Sure Russia could be a nice place if you were in the right place with the right person but being here alone sounded like an awful trip.

Clint raised an eyebrow when she turned back around to look at him, actually seeming happy to answer his question. “Mm Dubai was nice. Nice people, nice food, nice places. It had everything. You know one day we should go back, just you and me. No mission no purpose just to visit. I bet you could use with vacation after all this. I sure as hell could” He said with a slight smile, his eyes flickering up to hers to try and gauge a reaction out of her. In all seriousness, he meant it though.

“Skyscraper would count but as you chickened out and used a parachute I’m going to have to rule it out I’m afraid. Looks like I win hah!” Clint said with a lazy smile. “Sleep is for the weak though. No, I want to spend all night gossiping about what boys we like.” Clint teased with a grin that had been slapped over his face. “Don’t you worry if I’m gonna puke I can promise that it will be all over you,” He said in a dramatic tone as he looked back over at her. For a moment they made eye contact, his blue orbs staring directly into her emerald ones. The moment was cut short as she looked away again, this time closing her eyes. Feeling his heart begin to race he shooks his head, forcing his eyes closed he tried to concentrate on something else.

Laughing softly, Natasha shook her head before turning it in order to look at him again. ‘Depends on how much you snore tonight.’ Of course, she would never leave him behind. Especially not here, in Russia. He’d probably be lost forever, and Fury would personally kill her if he found out about it. Also, this would mean he would find about their reason for coming here, so getting rid of the best and most talkative archer she’s ever seen was no option at all.

_“Sleep is for the weak though. No, I want to spend all night gossiping about what boys we like.”_ The words rolled off of his tongue in a joking manner, though in an instant she answered him - not thinking about what was coming out of her mouth. ‘There’s only one.’ She whispered, actually only meant for herself, but her brain didn’t seem to function for a moment. What was meant to be only a thought in her mind might have been spoken out a bit too loud, so that he heard. Still, he wouldn’t know whom she meant, but... ‘You will never find out who that is. You wouldn’t stop teasing.’ Natasha added to prevent the immediate question from his side, the one she expected to follow at an instant. If he only knew.

‘Tell me though, is there really someone, doesn’t matter if man or woman, whom you like? Maybe even someone I know? I could try to make something possible if it’s someone from SHIELD. You deserve some love, Clinty.’ Was this just to help him find the right person though, or rather to get the knowledge if there was someone whom he... No, she shook her head slightly, trying to lose that thought. The redhead was probably just way too exhausted from the day, some sleep would help to get rid of those thoughts clouding up her mind. With her eyes shut, she still felt the heat rising to her cheeks right after the short eye contact they had. 

A spike of a familiar feeling suddenly came over Clint when Natasha mentioned that there was one. Presumably, she was referring to his silly comment of them talking about what boys they liked but he was just joking, not thinking she was even going to say anything back to his offhand comment. That familiar feeling from earlier on had returned, jealousy. 

Jealous of what exactly? He was afraid to admit the truth so tried so hard not to think about why he was feeling this way. Of course, Clint wanted to know who this man was. Why? Maybe so he could best him, it was dumb and he knew that but he couldn’t help but allowing these feelings to finally catch up with him. He wasn’t going to bother asking her because he knew she wouldn’t tell him, no matter how much he begged to know. She was never one to disclose her love life to him even after everything they had been through that was one thing the two didn’t really talk about. It just seemed that Natasha always wanted to change the subject as soon as it came up and that was that. Swallowing thickly he just nodded his head, not wanting to push her any further than he had already. 

“Sure there’s someone Tasha, there always has been,” He said quietly as he let his gaze linger a little longer this time. “You could say you know her in some sort of weird way, I’m not sure you’d approve though,” Clint said with a small sad smile. The reality of his current situation was slowly starting to sink in, knowing that it could never really happen. “I could say the exact same thing for you, I-I bet whoever that guy is he likes you a bunch” He finally said, sighing out as he did so. Scrunching his eyes closed he tried not to focus on this mystery man of hers but rather something else but no matter how hard he tried he couldn’t banish the thoughts out of his head. 

‘If you like her and she likes you, who am I to judge? You know I always want the best for you, even if I often tease you. You deserve some love though, someone to give all that love to that’s stored in your big heart.’ Her eyes scanned the silhouette of his body, the features of his face, or rather those that were visible in the dimmed room. He really deserved one to love him, and if that meant she had to step back from him because his job could likely be a barrier, she would do so. Even if it would tear her heart out. She would rather see him happy from a distance than lonely and sad while being close.

Natasha huffed softly, turning on her back to face up to the ceiling. “He doesn’t even know I like him like that. I don’t think he’ll ever know, and I’ll probably never tell him.” She sighed, shaking her head softly with a sad smile appeared on her lips. He couldn’t see, or at least she believed he couldn’t.

Though she didn’t exactly want to give Clint enough time to properly react to what she was saying just in case he managed to pair two and two together. Rolling back on her side she smiled at him. ‘But it’s getting late now, we should both get some sleep alright,’ Natasha said with a slight smile as her eyes glossed over him. It was only now she had noticed that Clint still had his hearing aids, something that he shouldn’t really wear to bed but at the moment he had been far too drunk to notice. “First let’s take these off, not sure how pleased you’ll be when you wake up with broken hearing aids’ She said with a smile before shuffling a little closer, he hand extending before carefully touching his ear - waiting for his permission to touch them. 

Swallowing thickly, Clint just parted his lips in response to what she had said about the man she liked. There was nothing he could say but the jealously building up in stomach was saying enough about that. He watched as her hand went out to touch his hearing aids which caused him to sharply inhale. The topic of hearing and his deafness was a very sensitive one, so much so he avoided it at all costs. Not only that but usually he would never let anyone touch his hearing aids or his ears because it was his weakness.

But with Natasha, it was different. He watched as her hand hovered above his ear, patiently waiting for him to give her the go ahead to which he promptly did with a nod and a smile. She wasted no time as she carefully brushed her fingers against the tip of his ear before slowly grasping the back of his hearing aid and removed it from his ear - rendering him deaf on one side. Taking in a deep breath, he turned onto his back to she could remove the hearing aid from his left ear. Natasha did the same the thing, gently touching his ear in an adorning manner before taking out his hearing aid. 

A pit formed in his stomach as he rolled back on his side while Natasha carefully placed his hearing aids on the bedside table. He felt so vulnerable but he knew that he could trust her so he was trying his best to reassure himself. Propping himself upwards, Clint held out his hand in a palm in front of his mouth before tapping that hand against his other hand which he was holding out in front of him. Moving one of his hands horizontally, he hovered the other palm above it as he was signing _“Good-night”_ to her in ASL.

Smiling, Natasha watched as Clint signed to him - one of which she recognised and quickly repeated to him. She had tried her best to learn sign language and it was only now that she was properly beginning to pick it up. With one final smile in his direction, she rested her head on the pillow as she sighed softly. She whispered to him, fully knowing that he couldn’t hear him but he could still lip read. ‘Don’t worry, you’ve got me now’


	4. Your friendly neighbourhood Hawk-Guy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Right, it's been a while since I posted but I finally got the time to write this one up. I may or may not have gotten inspiration from a certain film for a certain scene but we won't dwell on that because I thought it was very fitting and ingenious haha. I hope you are enjoying this so far because I'm having an absolute blast writing it and I'm only getting started so I hope you are in for the long run. Enjoy!
> 
> \- J

The next morning arrived, the sun peeking through the skits of the curtain at their window, lighting up the room a bit. During the night Natasha had turned quite often but ended up facing him as he woke up. In her sleep she didn’t notice how close they actually got, but if she did she’d probably inch away in shame. 

Just a couple of moments later the alarm went off, her eyes widening at an instant and her hand crashing down on the device to turn it off. Natasha never liked to get up, but she knew when she could stay in bed a little longer or not. This time, she could at least spend five more minutes under the warm covers, snuggled up to the soft cushions. After a while, she could feel movement on his side and felt his arm brushing along hers. ‘Good morning. I’m afraid it is that time. And I’m afraid you’ve lost the bet.’ A weak smile formed on her lips before she took a deep breath and stretched her arms and legs out wide, eventually sliding her legs over the edge to sit up straight in bed. 

With Natasha speaking and moving around next to him, Clint was slowly beginning to wake up from his slumber. A pounding sensation began to fill up his senses reminding him of the incredible amount of liquor he had consumed. Hell, it wasn’t even that much but rather the alcohol content than anything else. Tilting his head to the side he cracked open his eyes only to see her back facing him. From what he saw she could be getting ready still so quickly shut his eyes and pretended like he hadn’t seen anything. 

A hand ran along her face to wipe the sleep from her face, spending just a short moment longer to wake up properly. ‘I’ll go to the bathroom first. You can get some more minutes of sleep if you want to. I’ll wake you up when I’m ready.’ Natasha got up and pulled her shirt down which had slipped up a little during her sleep.

Walking through the room, she picked up her towel and turned around the last time. ‘Pills are in the kitchen, I think…’ Considering the fact that he possibly had a headache, but then there were times where one didn’t have any. Like magic. She never knew how it felt. Once she got drunk, the other morning felt like hell. 

“Mmph whatever the extra minutes were so worth it” He muttered against the pillow. Closing his eyes properly again he rested back into the bed. A couple more minutes of shut-eye couldn’t do him any harm that was at least until he properly fell asleep again.

With that, the redhead left the room and walked down to her bag, grabbing some casual clothes before she entered the bathroom and jumped in the shower, taking some more time to get ready for the day. Once she finished and put on blue jeans, a shirt and a sweat jacket on top, she hurried upstairs to wake him, knocking on the door just to make sure he wasn’t busy with anything she should not see, waiting for his voice to echo through the room, or not. She entered, arms crossed as she leaned in the doorway, staring at him. 

‘Time to get up. It’s a wonderful day to leave a country in which the secret service wants to see you dead.’ Once he got up, Nat walked down to the kitchen, preparing some toast as breakfast while he got ready in the bathroom. She would’ve made something more... delicious, but all they had was toast.

Clint wasn’t sure how long Natasha had been away but once she came back it had felt like he had blinked and time had passed. A knock at the door forced his head to jerk back up and look at the general direction of the door. “Umph come in” He yelled but it came out as more of a croak. Forcing himself into a sitting position he rubbed his eyes, trying to ignore the thumping pain at the front of his head. 

“Y’know around about now I would happily let them kill me. I can’t believe you let me get drunk.” Clint whined as he scratched his back. Forcing himself out of the bed he wandered around the room trying to find the jeans he had just cast aside the night before. He eventually found them under the bed and pulled them on. Grabbing a white shirt he pulled it on before finding his jacket on the back of the door, he slid that on too.

Natasha scoffed, shaking her head softly as she crossed her arms. ‘Oh stop it, crybaby. You knew what you signed up for when you opened the bottle. I offered you water too. Now get ready, we don’t have all day.’ She said with a smirk as she stood at the door, her eyes darting across to where Clint was getting out of bed, not realising the lack of clothing he had been wearing. Her eyes went a little wide as he diverted her gaze for a second before it eventually drifted back towards him.

Clearing her throat she turned around so he couldn’t see her red cheeks. ‘Just hurry up alright’ She mumbled. With that said she headed downstairs to prepare the toasts, overthinking her action. Would she really make him breakfast? He would use this to tease her again, for sure, but like that she could at least make up a bit of the time he lost because of her private mission. No vocal thank you, but a physical. One that wasn’t worth to talk about though. Natasha added some jelly on top of the toasts, making one for her and two for him. After a look at it, she took out another one and prepared that as well, but not for her.

With Natasha leaving Clint to himself, he quickly made his way into the bathroom in order to clean up. Rather than showering he just washed his face and brushed his teeth before staring at his reflection in the mirror. He was trying his absolute best to not think about what he had said last night because he really didn’t feel like worry over things that he said in a half-drunken state. Once he was semi-clean he slowly made his way down the stairs and into the kitchen where Natasha was.

“I hate you. Why did you even suggest alcohol to me.” He moaned as he walked past her desperately searching through the cupboards to find some pills that would get rid of his headache. He eventually found them and quickly popped them into his mouth not even bothering with water. Leaning back on the counter he looked over at where she stood.

The redhead heard his steps coming closer and closed the glass of jelly, sucking the bit that was stuck on her thumb off of it, before she turned around to him. Natasha chuckled loudly, grabbing both plates to carry them over to the couch where they ate the night before. She sat down with her plate in her lap and placed his on the table. ‘Made you relax though, didn’t it? And you were so talkative, I didn’t even know you could talk so much…’ She teased, brushing a few strands of her red hair behind her ear, lifting the toast to her mouth to take a bite. ‘Mhh... and I’m not your mom. If you want to drink alcohol I let you. Like that, you might not talk so much today then, huh?’ She smirked, swallowing down the first bits before she continued to eat her toast.

“Wow, Natasha Romanoff making me breakfast. Not something you get to see everyday huh?” Clint teased as he began to wonder if she could even remember the stuff he had disclosed to her the night before. She hadn’t been anywhere near as drunk as him but still had enough alcohol in her system to let some things slip. “What time do we need to be at the airport?” He asked as he wandered into the living room, folding up the pizza boxes from the night before. Once that was done he walked back into the kitchen and grabbed a coffee mug but there was no coffee. Of course, there wasn’t, so he just poured some water into it and sipped it.

‘Don’t get used to it. I only felt bad because you were wasted. This is a one-time thing. You won’t see me do that again.’ She said with a smirk. Nat looked at the wall to her right, inspecting the clock that was hung up there. ‘Umm... 45 minutes. It’s a 20-minute drive though... plus the check-in. So, not too much time left for small talk. But we had enough of that last night, don’t you think so too?’ Natasha looked over her shoulder, chuckling again.

Draining the rest of his water into his mouth he shuddered as he felt the pills slowly make their way down his throat. Hopefully, it wouldn’t take too long for their function to kick in because without any hat or sunglasses there was no way he would last a minute outside. Setting the cup aside he watched her as she lifted two plates from the side and carried them to the table not waiting for him before she began to eat. Even though he teased her about it, it was still a nice gesture nonetheless. Staring at her from a distance a smile played on his lips as he just stood there for a moment or two. 

Snapping out of his trance, Clint quickly followed her to the couch and took the same seat that he had sat at the night before. The two bottles of alcohol had been left out, the bottle of wine was much more empty than he had remembered. “Good job I trust you eh? Do you know how easy it would have been to kill me like that? Could have ended me just by telling me there was food in the next room” Clint said with a grin, not regretting his decision to drink as much as he had been this morning. Sitting upright he moved forward and picked up one of the slices of toast Natasha had prepared for him. He bit into it and quickly swallowed it and nodded. “Wow, this is pretty good. Have you considered a career in cookery? Leave this life of ours to pursue that culinary dream of yours huh.” Clint teased as he quickly finished his toast.

‘I rather stick to kicking people’s asses. That’s more fun, you know?’ She lifted her brows with a smile and continued to eat her toast, soon finishing it up before he finished his three. _”You may not be my mom but you sure as hell act like one sometimes.”_ This brought an even wider smile on her lips, even causing a chuckle to escape her mouth. ‘I only do what has to be done. Otherwise, you’d be lost, wouldn’t you? Getting up too late, having nothing to eat. Babies get treated like ones. And who cares for babies? Correct, moms.’ She answered her own question and shrugged slightly before getting up on her feet, leaving the plate on the table. He could do some work too, right? At least the cleaning part. Natasha walked over to her bag, everything from last night piled up next to it. She started picking piece after piece, squeezing it in there without paying too much attention if it would crumble or not. There was no time for this.

“But don’t you worry I will make it up to you if cooking for me is such a big deal? How about I make you dinner one day? Like I said yesterday I make a mean spaghetti.” He offered up as he raised his eyebrow. Clint finished his second piece of toast and was reaching for his third as she told him how little time they had left to leave the house and get to the airport.

Placing the rest of the toast in his mouth, holding it like that as he stood up and grabbed both of their empty plates. Carrying them to the sink he quickly washed them before placing them into the drying rack. Grabbing the piece of toast that was hanging from his mouth, some had smeared across his cheek he turned to look at her. “I’m ready so what are we waiting for huh?” Clint said as he crammed the rest of the toast in his mouth before walking over to their bags that were still by the front door.

‘I rather stick to kicking people’s asses. That’s more fun, you know?” She lifted her brows with a smile and continued to eat her toast, soon finishing it up before he finished his three. Natasha walked over to her bag, everything from last night piled up next to it. She started picking piece after piece, squeezing it in there without paying too much attention if it would crumble or not. There was no time for this. 

‘Spaghetti sounds good to me. Maybe someday when we’re back in America. I don’t know when I got a day off tho, or rather an evening. Fury is quite... enthusiastic in the matter of loading missions on me these days.’ She pulled the zipper of her bag and closed it, swinging it over her shoulder. He already finished cleaning the plates, which impressed her quite a lot. ‘Time to go then. The plane isn’t like me. Won’t wait for your slow ass to get moving all day.’ Nat teased, smirking to herself as she threw a jacket over her torso before she followed behind him, waiting till he checked the area so they could move out without worry.

Carefully folding up his bow he placed it back in its case before lifting up the rest of his bags. Clint reached forward and grasped the door handle and stuck his head out just to make sure there wasn’t anyone waiting outside to jump them. Once the coast was clear he grabbed the car keys and unlocked it before throwing his bags in the trunk. “Well at least you wait, I’m sure the plane would wait for me if they knew what a heroic man I am,” He said with a smile as they loaded their bags into the back of the car. He then walked around the side of the car and climbed into the passenger seat. ‘More or less heroic. A hero for many, an idiot for few.’ She teased, nudging his side with her elbow as she sat on the passenger seat.

The two of them reached the car and loaded their stuff in the trunk, walking to each side of the car to take a seat. Thinking about their cover, should anyone get suspicious, it might be better to let him drive this time. And, which man wouldn’t like to drive a sports car? ‘Hey, partner.’ She leaned down, lurking in the car to catch a glimpse of him. ‘Wanna switch sides? Do you drive? Except for your headache still knocked you out completely…’ She lifted a brow, then walked around the front of the car to take his place instead. Once she sat, she waited for him to take a seat on the driver’s side, buckling up. ‘You gotta know that our cover, should anything go wrong, is being a couple from America on a short trip to do some sightseeing in Russia. But we’re on our way back to America already, of course…’

“Oh right course,” Clint said as he traversed the other side of the car, it was a little bold of him to assume she was happy to chauffeur him around the place. Pulling the driver’s door open he slid inside and put on his seat belt before looking at the car in front of him. He had to admit it was a pretty nice car, nothing like he was used to driving of course. “Don’t you think it would have been nice to tell me this earlier Tasha?” Clint asked with a grin as he looked over at her shaking his head slightly. “That is fine by me but you better not blow our cover so I expect the whole boyfriend experience! Hand holding and all” He teased as he stuck the car in verse as he carefully backed out of the driveway.

Natasha raises a brow, gazing at the street for a moment before she turned towards him. ‘Easy there…’ She rested her head against the headrest of the seat and rolled her eyes for a moment, a sigh escaping her lips before she eventually talked further. ‘I know you’re desperately looking for a girlfriend, but I’m a little too ambitious for you, Clinty.’ The redhead smirked to herself, watching the streets once they finally started driving off to the airport.

Clint scoffed at Natasha use of the word ‘desperate’ to describe the fact he wouldn’t mind having a girlfriend. “Woah now mind what you are saying. I am not desperately looking for a girlfriend of anything I just wouldn’t mind having one. If I was desperate there is no way I would be single right now because I’ll have you know I have got all the girls prying after me! You should see how many love letters I got on valentines, it would blow you away.” He said with a grin as he shot a sideways glance. “Or not but maybe that’s ‘cause you’d be jealous,” He said n a rather proud tone, though he couldn’t look at her reaction because he hadn’t been looking at the road and the car was slowly swerving off the edge of the road.

Natasha furrowed her brow, taking a moment to think about what he said, to make sure it wasn’t just something in her mind. ‘Jealous? Of how many cards you get? Or that you get cards from women? Or girls... who knows how many fangirls Hawkeye already got but the fact that you brag about the number of Valentine cards you got tells me a lot. If they knew how you really were there would be a few less.’ She smirked amused and listened to his next comment, once more surprising her a little. She wasn’t quite sure how to react to the ambitious kind of note, so she just kept her mouth shut and her thoughts to herself. This could only get more awkward than it already was, so... better not.

‘We’ll do what’s needed if we have to. Until then, you keep your hands where they belong.’ Natasha chuckled, glancing over to him for a short second. He was driving on the wrong side of the road, but she didn’t care to tell him yet. Learning by doing. He would never forget on which side to drive once it got a bit dangerous with another car coming right towards him.

“Now would probably be a good time to ask which side of the road Russians drive on” He mumbled under his breath as his eyes darted around to see any cars but there weren’t any nearby. Taking a risk he decided to go against his American instincts and stuck to the left side of the road though after a couple of minutes of driving he nearly crashed into a truck that was barreling towards them on the same side of the road. “Crap” He muttered as he quickly switched lanes to the right side of the road. 

“Right note to self-check which side to drive on before entering the country” He grumbled under his breath. “You need to tell me where I am driving because I have no idea which way to go, Nat,” He said looking over at her with a small smile, hoping she wasn’t too mad he had nearly killed them both. Grasping his hands tightly on the steering wheel they sped through the Russian landscape, they still had a little ways to go but this was nice. The sun was just rising and the roads pretty much empty. “Russia can be so pretty,” He said as he cast a glance out of his window admiring some trees.

Natasha just sat back and watched as Clint drove on the complete opposite side of the road. Rather than saying anything she just laughed as he quickly changed to the other side of the street, which earned a few insults in Russian from the other driver, before she answered finally. ‘Right side.’ Too late, but very amusing. For her at least. She rested her elbow on the side of the door, propping her head upon her hand. “Next left, then second right.” Those kinds of jokes could be funny, where they would just drive around because she was misleading him, but today there was no time for that. They had to get to the airport on time, and time was rare these days. 

_”Russia can be so pretty.”_ Nat remained silent, a bit surprised to hear that from his mouth. Usually, she believed Americans hated the Russian country, but she might be wrong with that. At least, whenever she told that she was Russian, she often earned judging looks. Clint here seemed to be without prejudice, which was the better choice for him. Otherwise, he might earn a punch because of teasing her about it.

‘Yeah, can be. Depends on the place, and the weather. If you like snow, Russia is your thing.’ A glance on her watch allowed the female agent to spot the time, and they were quite late already. ‘Can you step on the gas by any chance? I know it’s beautiful and all but we have to hurry. I knew I should’ve just woken you up earlier.’ The redhead smirked, her gaze switching between the street and buildings on each side of the road while they came closer and closer to the airport.

Clint was pretty thankful that Natasha knew where they were going because every road looked the same and he couldn’t read the signs for the life of him either. “Mm, I think snow is underrated. We don’t get much in the US well at least I didn’t when I grew up. After spending time in New York it’s a pretty common occurrence, especially in winter. Though Russian snow is different, it isn’t all trodden through and coloured grey. No, it is very pretty. I would love to spend more time out here. Well when there isn’t a whole Russian agency on our ass though” He said with a smile.

“Alright alright. I was tryna be all suave but if you want me to step on the gas all you had, to do was ask.” He said as he pressed his foot lower down causing the car to speed forward, definitely breaking any speed law this country had. Luckily for him, the roads were pretty straight meaning there were no risky bends he had to quickly turn into. “If you’d of woken me up any earlier I would have probably killed you. A man has gotta sleep alright.” Clint said shaking his head as the two agents shot through the Russian countryside. “Besides we aren’t gonna be late, I think you worry too much. You gotta just sit back and relax, there is nothing you can do physically to speed us up” He said.

In record time the two agents reached the airport that they had been at not too long ago. Clint quickly pulled the car into a parking space before clambering out of the car. “Y’know, if we weren’t in a rush I would have grabbed the door for you. Like the real gentleman, I am” Clint said grinning as he was already at the back of the car grabbing their bags. Swinging two over his shoulders he waited for her to grab the ones that were left before locking up the car.

“Do we need to give these back or do we just dump them somewhere?” He asked as the two sped walked into the front of the airport. “More importantly where the hell are we going? And another question would be if I brought my passport.” He mumbled as he patted his pockets before revealing the small book that was his passport. “All good right here. So where to Ms Romanoff?” He asked with a smile.

The redhead opened the door on her side once he parked the car and got out, leaning both arms on top of it as she watched him get out too and walk to the back. “Oh don’t worry. I didn’t expect anything else from you.” She grinned back at him and joined his side, picking up the two last bags to carry. “The keys go back to the US and they take care of transferring the car. Cost me a bit more but is a lot easier... and less time-consuming.

She looked at him in disbelief, staring at his hands that patted his pockets. ‘I literally gave it to you like twenty minutes ago. There’s no way you could’ve lost it already…’ As he pulled it out, she released a breath of relief, glad their whole disguise wouldn’t be ruined by him being the idiot he sometimes was. ‘Right at the airport desk. Don’t forget... you’re not Clint Barton, and I’m not Natasha. I’m Natalie Rushman. I hope you can keep those two words in mind.’

“Ah-ha! The great return of Natalie Rushman, one of my favourite of your disguises. Though have to admit I liked the one you used in Paris, her name slipped my mind but she wore heels … did I ever tell you how good you looked in heels?” He teased as a small grin crept up to his lips knowing he could pretty much say these sort of things while in public as she couldn’t hit him in such an open space.

“Right yes, my name is not Clint I am…” He said before pausing to fumble for his passport in order to find his name as he hadn’t actually looked at it. “Carter Brown. Well for such a prestigious organisation, S.H.I.E.L.D really doesn’t know how to be sneaky with their names. Like c’mon I’m not fooling anyone if my fake name starts with the same letters as my real name” Clint snickered as he shook his head slightly.

Rolling her eyes, she just scoffed at his words. Though that didn’t mean she didn’t agree with them because he was right, the names they were given were a little lack lustre.‘Oh... and you know what we are, yes? So maybe... we should act like that…’ She said as she looked away from him knowing what was coming. 

Even if it would be a bit awkward, maybe for both sides, to act like being a couple. Sacrifices had to be made, but there were worse men out there. It wasn’t that bad to be honest. Slinging one bag around her shoulder whilst holding the other in her hand, she slowly inched her free hand over to his, carefully wrapping it around his tight grip on the bag he was carrying. She didn’t look up at him, or else he’d probably see the faint blush returning to her usually not so rosy cheeks. ‘Not a word to anyone at SHIELD or I’ll send you back to this place.’ Natasha mumbled, smiling slightly as they started to move towards the entrance of the airport and directly to the desks.

With Natasha’s words, he hadn’t exactly expected her to fully act on them just yet, maybe if they really needed to seal the deal of being a couple she would casually be more affectionate towards him. So when he felt the warmth of her hand curl around the exterior of his fist he had to look down at their hands to make sure it was Natashas hand not some creep. Glancing down he quickly avoided her eye contact as a small smile etched itself onto his lips, one that he couldn’t exactly stop from forming. 

Swallowing thickly, Clint blinked for a couple of seconds to try and process everything that was happening. It wasn’t like this was the first mission he had to do this sort of stuff with, no it wasn’t but it was the first mission he had to act like this with Natasha and for some reason, it was different this time. Though he didn’t allow himself to pursue those thoughts for much longer as she broke the silence between the two. “I don’t doubt you on that, my lips are sealed. Unless we are talking money, y’know I can be bribed very easily” He joked though there was no sincerity in his final words. Clint knew that this was something that was best to be kept between the two of them.

After their arrival at the front desk, the worker there checked both of their perfectly faked passports, looking at each of them to check with the pictures on it. To have friends at the government was great, to have more of them in the underground was even better. The worker asked something in Russian, and Natasha almost answered but remembered that her new ID was as american as a woman living in New York could be. ‘Excuse me?’ She tilted her head slightly, and the worker asked again, this time in English. _“Did you have a nice stay?”_ Nat looked to her side at Clint, then back to the worker, and nodded with a bright smile. 

‘Yes, an unforgettable one. He proposed to me.’ The worker smiled, handing them their passports back. “Congratulations. Have a nice flight and all the best for your future.” The redhead smiled again, grabbing their passports to stuff them in her pockets, then picked up the bag on the ground and continued to walk with him towards the waiting area. Their flight was delayed, so they had some time to go, but still had to make it through half of the airport until they would eventually arrive at their terminal to check in for their flight back to America.

Clint watched Natasha and the Russian woman share an exchange but he was only half-listening so when he caught the words ‘proposed’ he suddenly zoned back in. “Oh yeah, that happened didn’t it? Finally am going to get to marry my dream woman,” He said with a smile before looking back at Natasha in a sad sort of fashion. Clearing his throat he broke the gaze he held with her back towards the woman who was processing their passports. The two went through surprisingly with ease and it wasn’t long before they were on the other side of the passport area. “Fiance huh? Missing the ring,” He said with a smile as he glanced down at her ringless finger.

Natasha looked down at her fingers, spreading them as he mentioned that she was missing the most important symbolic part of the engagement. A ring. Sure, it was clear for everyone that there should be a ring, for her too, but how should she get one in this short time? And after all, this was just made up seconds ago, not planned for weeks like the infiltration a day ago. The engagement that is. Being a couple she planned for quite a while, but kept the news to herself until today, just to see his reaction. ‘Might overthink the gentleman part. Which fiancé would not buy his soon-to-be wife a ring for their engagement?’ She whispered back, smiling as well. ‘Especially his dream woman.’

Clint furrowed his eyebrows as the other agent leaned in close to whisper something to him as they slowly walked away from the passport office in the airport. Biting his lower lip, he aggressively shook his head in disagreement. If they hadn’t been in such a public place he would have probably yelled out in outrage because up until around ten minutes ago he wasn’t even aware of what their covers relationship between one another and then she just sprung their recent engagement on him like that?

The agent shook his head in disbelief of her words through a small smile had already worked its way back up to his lips. “Well, this gentleman would have bought his dream woman a ring if she had actually told him about the exciting news of the fact that they would be getting married. Y’know never thought that this is how it would go down.” He grumbled with a light sigh. “I am not gonna hear the end of this am I?” Clint mumbled though it wasn’t like he would exactly mind of course. It was more of a bragging right if anything.

“Any way at least the plane is delayed, that gives us a little more time to not rush. Also means we can actually work out which way to go” He mumbled as they stopped a little further up the airport. Dropping his bags he walked towards the map and traced his finger over the path that they should take before stopping at their terminal. “Right I think I know where to go but it looks like it might be upstairs and I do not see any stairs?” Clint said as he walked back towards Natasha. This time though the grabbed his bags with his left hand leaving his right hand free to reach towards her free hand and entangle their fingers together. It meant that Natasha’s hand wasn’t left awkwardly clawing at the back of his.

“How are we gonna get through security with all these guns?” He said in a hushed tone as the two made a casual stroll through the airport. “The tiniest things set those detectors off so we gotta be careful. That reminds me I’ll need to take out my hearing aids but please don’t let me lose them. Last time I did that I was more or less deaf for weeks.” He whined as he looked up at the sign, making sure they were going the right way. Though it was useless as he couldn’t read any of it anyways. “There isn’t anything else we need to do right before going through security? Got the bags, got the passports and got the tickets. All we need to do is get through security and be on our way back to the land of dreams.” He said with a laugh.

As soon as Clint entangled the two’s hands she looked down at them, blushing slightly, even though she told herself not to, and looked away from him. Reaching for her bag that she left on the ground, they began to walk through the airport, Natasha trusting in his skill to lead them through the mass of people. ‘There are probably escalators or stairs somewhere near. I would be surprised if we missed them. And the weapons won’t be noticed. Trust me with that. There’s a 98 percent chance we won’t get caught. The other two is not in our hands.’ She smirked, now looking up to him again. This was risky, for sure, but dumping their weapons in the trash? They meant too much to her. One of her pistols was from her training, the memories it held were worth more than anyone could pay for it.

Glancing to his left he could have sworn that there had been a light red dusting on her cheeks. He had to tell himself that it could have been due to anything, maybe a sudden surge of temperature or maybe the simple act of him taking her hand into his own, but he tried not to concentrate on the latter. That thought was making him feel like a giddy schoolboy and now really wasn’t the time or the place for that, especially in a situation like this but there was just some part of him that couldn’t help it. Clearing his throat, he tried to force different thoughts into his head until she answered his question from earlier on. 

“Oh well, now that’s assuring knowing that a small percentage is out of our hands. This better not be one of those improvised moments you have because I’m not sure if I’m gonna be able to keep a straight face. Next thing you know I’ll be on the floor wheezing with laughter because you’ll be telling us we are having the honeymoon in New Jersey.” Clint said as he raised his eyebrows, the thought of even having a honeymoon made him want to laugh.

‘I’ve always dreamed about a honeymoon there, no way you’re going to take this from me, sweetheart!’ She clearly enjoyed the role they were in, playing along, even if he wouldn’t be comfortable with it. That’s the cover they went with, and if he had a problem with it he could simply drop it and get caught by the Russians.

The pair kept moving, further and further, passing a huge number of people on their ways either with or against their way, but something caught the eye of the female agent, more than everything else around her. ‘3 o’clock. Two men in black. They look suspicious.’ She whispered, trying to keep her eyes off them. They came so far, a chase through the airport would likely end the last bit of their tour in a disaster. ‘Just act normal. I don’t think they have seen our faces yesterday. At least I hope so.’

As the two slowly got closer to the security section of the airport, he was slowly getting the feeling that they were being watched but so far he hadn’t spotted anyone. Natasha soon confirmed his suspicion as she mentioned that there were two men dressed in black on their tail, though it was likely that they hadn’t been spotted. “Wow very classy, not suspicious at all. If your gonna follow someone at least wear a hat.” He muttered as he cast a glance to the side when could, confirming what she had seen. “Act normal huh? You are asking the wrong guy to act normal but I can try” He said as he tried to think what ‘normal’ people did at the airport, especially just an average American couple.

The two came to a halt as they began to get in the line for their bags to go through the machine. Squeezing her hand slightly, he brushed his thumb across the back fo her hand before speaking up. Staying silent and avoiding eye contact with everyone would be a dead give away. “Jeez, these lines are pretty long right honey? When we touch back down in the States we should go back to that place I was talking to you about earlier. You know get a fancy dinner, have a proper date after our romantic trip. Then we could find your ring size and I can finally get you that engagement ring. How does that sound?” He asked her, trying to make it seem that they were just a normal couple having a normal conversation despite their reality.

A small grin formed on her lips as she listened to his words about having a proper dinner, finding a fitting ring for their fake engagement, and then the question. The redhead’s smile widened, answering to what he just said. ‘That sounds fantastic, love. How did I get so lucky to deserve a man like you? First this trip, now you’re telling me that you’ll shower me with even more love and affection. I couldn’t be happier.’ Natasha spoke rather loud, a few people around them glancing over to look at them, especially since they were talking in English and the highest percentage of people here spoke Russian.

“Whatever you say, honey, I don’t think the airport is the right place for this conversation. That being said I heard Washingtons not bad this time of year. Much cheaper than going out of the states” He grumbled, trying to throw anyone off that may be listening to their conversation. To most the two probably just sounded like a newly engaged couple who were just having a normal argument, Clint thought they were pulling the whole couple thing off pretty well in his opinion. Not that he found it incredibly difficult to do so.

They arrived at the queue, within seconds there were a couple more people lining up behind them. They weren’t alone, but those men could easily sneak around them. They were probably just waiting for the alarms to go off, so that they could catch them. Something Natasha hoped would not happen. It took them minutes to get to the security guys, who took their bags and placed them on a machine to scan them. Meanwhile, the two had to go through another machine that would scan them. Natasha was first, but the alarms didn’t go off. Luckily. It would all depend on Clint, and especially their bags. SHIELD had some special gadgets to outplay the machines, but Natasha never used it before. Hope was the only thing she had, at this very moment she could do nothing else but pray.

It wasn’t long until the line had reached them, now there was nothing Clint could do besides trust Natasha. She had said that she had things under control so who was he not to believe her? Gently unclasping their hands, he lifted his bags and placed them onto the conveyer belt before moving to the side. He was gonna have to empty his pockets before stepping through the metal detector so that also meant taking off his hearing aids, rendering him totally deaf until he put them back on. Now that was something he didn’t like doing because it made him vulnerable but he Natasha with him and he trusted that she would have his back if things went south and he couldn’t hear. There wasn’t very many people he could say the same about though. 

Not wasting another second, Clint was quick to remove all that was from his pockets which wasn’t much just his passport and car keys. Glancing back at the other agent he nodded at her with a small smile before reaching up and switching off both of his hearing aids before carefully taking them out and placing them into the tray. Now everything was completely silent which in this situation was very unnerving considering he was watching a bag packed through of weapons go through an x-ray machine. Clint looked back up and saw the airport security wave for him to step forward into the machine which he did before raising his arms up. 

The machine span around him but all he could focus on was the machine to the right which was scanning through their bags. He was so focused on that, that he nearly didn’t see the guard waving at him to step through because he was clear. Swallowing thickly, Clint nodded before stepping forward and watched his bags come through. He let out a sigh of relief as a smile returned to his face. Looking back he gave Natasha a thumbs up, now he was through she shouldn’t be much trouble either. He placed his hearing aids back into his ears and grabbed his bags before standing aside as he waited for her to get through.

Once they were both through the security, it was only a matter of getting to their terminal now. In the distance, he spotted the escalators Natasha had mentioned earlier so that was a good start at least. It was likely that those men were still around so they still needed to play off the act as being a couple. So, Clint gently transferred his bags into one hand before snaking his arm around her waist, he hoped he wasn’t breaking any boundaries but there wasn’t much time to think about that. With that, he quickly drove her towards the set of escalators that would take them to the upper part of the airport. Breathing slowly he carefully stepped onto the first step of the escalator and moved to right a little so there was room for Natasha to stand next to him. “Shit. I think they are still behind us, a couple of paces maybe but still close enough.” He muttered to her as he had caught a glimpse of the black suits nearing them. This was going to be a tough one to escape from.

A bit taken by surprise, Natasha got pulled closer to his side after he wrapped his arm around her waist. She looked down at his hand squeezing her side slightly, then back up to him, but said nothing. Surely just to keep up the cover, but this time he played it pretty serious. She snuck her own and around his back, lifting her bag with her free hand before they moved on to the escalator. Her eyes scanned the area around them, every single person that was coming closer, or simply looked suspicious, got a closer look.

The mention of possible stalkers made her head swirl to the other side, trying to catch sight of the men. ‘Mhhm. I would actually prefer to prevent a chase…’ She whispered back. At the look over her shoulder, Natasha could see the two she spotted earlier making their ways down on another escalator right by their side. They would most likely spot them, and at that moment the relaxed flight would be canceled. There was no plan B to get back to America. Just this one way, or none. They came closer each second, squeezing past other people on the escalator, but yet did not see them. A distraction art maneuver could save Clint and Nat, but what could she do to take any attention away from them? Thinking about it for a short moment, one possibility came up to her mind, but one she actually didn’t like that much. Likely Clint wouldn’t too, but to save their lifes, they had to go through it.

‘I’m sorry.’ She whispered again, turning around to face him, her hand quickly placed on his neck to pull him closer to her. Sorry, she was for not asking him before, but there was no time for that now. Natasha stood on tiptoes, leaning her head slightly to the side and eventually pulled him even closer to her face, so close that she could lock her lips with his.

Public affection made others easily uncomfortable, plus the hood on her head would cover herself and Clint’s face too. This was perfect, at least as a distraction. The kiss... she didn’t think about at this very moment. Her eyes closed, breath escaping her nostrils while they kept kissing, as long as it would take the men to pass them.

 _‘I’m sorry.’_ Those words rang through his ears, not exactly sure what she meant by them so he span around to look at her. She hadn’t done anything that would deserve an apology, not like she made those anyway unless she absolutely had to. Normally an action would replace the words so Clint was pretty taken aback but the use of them. 

“Sorry for wha-” He began but was cut off nearly instantly as he felt her hand on his neck. That was weird, she normally didn’t touch him there but it was growing odder by the second as he felt their faces grow closer to one another. No this couldn’t actually be happening right? He was going to wake up in that crappy house they were staying in and he was going to roll over to find Natasha sleeping soundly. Though the warm breath on his face was telling him differently and soon her lips were crashing upon his own.

Oh. That’s what she was doing. Clint had completely tensed up, he had no idea what to do at that moment or how to react. Why she was kissing him was still completely beyond him, his brain just couldn’t put two and two together. Eventually, his features softened as his lips parted ever so slightly allowing him to carefully press his lips back down against hers. The hand that he had rested on her waist had curled into a fist, his fingers tangling with the hem of her shirt. This wasn’t exactly the place he had imagined this to take place in at all, no he was thinking of a much nicer setting but hey here they were. 

It was a rather awkward moment for her, to cling to her partner’s front, body against body, his heartbeat sensible on her own chest while their lips were locked together in a affectionate looking, and maybe it even was like that, kiss. There were many things she had done to save a mission, but this one was new, and the most awkward and spontaneous one so far. To her surprise, Clint didn’t even flinch from her and her lips. He kept his posture, and even more so, he joined in the kiss in no time. 

Professionalism? Maybe. Whilst they kissed, there was something that kept her tied to him, emotionally, something that prevented her from pulling back because it felt wrong. Though, it didn’t. And she rather enjoyed than disliked it. But why? Natasha told herself she didn’t need anyone to keep going, to work, to exist. Her life had only one purpose, that of being an agent, the best of the best. If she hadn’t already achieved that title, she would do anything to achieve it. But here she stood, clinging to a man who wasn’t a stranger at all, enjoying the warmth of his body during the short moment they had. Was this her weakness? The one and only spot where she could be hurt? Affection? Perhaps. Clint didn’t move, at least not his body, but he did kiss her, and that he did not bad at all.

Clint didn’t dare pull back as he allowed his eyelids to flutter to a close but he was pushed slightly closer to her as people pushed past both of them climbing further up the escalator. That action forced him to open his eyes and glance sideways who had happened to be so rude. It was the men in suits, they were just ignoring them. That was when it finally hit him. Oh. OH. It all suddenly made sense, why she had quickly grabbed him, apologized and kissed him. He was so stupid of course that was why to keep the integrity of their covers and like were taught public affection made others uncomfortable. 

Clint felt his heart sink, knowing he shouldn’t of let himself believe anything else could have been the reason why she had done that now he was already paying the consequences. Even with this knowledge he still refused to break their kiss just yet, after all, he couldn’t be sure if they were still looking at them. It was better safe than sorry.

Instead of backing off, he even leaned in more, his hand around her waist tightening around her shirt, keeping her in spot. The redhead arched her brows slightly, back at reality, noticing what exactly was happening. This was far away from a faked kiss to hide from those men. **Okay Clint, that’s enough.** She thought to herself, breathing out through her nostrils while their lips kept sealed together. But, much to her vulnerability, she couldn’t just pull back, not until Clint gave the ok. She couldn’t see the process of the men who had been following them, only Clint could. And so, only Clint could end their fake or not-so-fake kiss in safety.

Seconds passed and neither agent had moved. Maybe Natasha was waiting for him to move but he was the one waiting for her to move. As much as he hated to do so, he slowly pulled back his head breaking apart their lips that had previously been locked together. Staring down at her he didn’t have anything to say so just looked at her with almost wide eyes. Breathing out, he carefully loosened the fist he had balled up and returned his hand back to her waist where it had been before.  
It was only a kiss. It was only a kiss? Right? A kiss meant nothing, at least it was meant to mean nothing. People kissed all the time and it didn’t mean anything. Especially if the kiss was done out of professionalism, well at least that was the case for Natasha. The same couldn’t really be said about Clint, it was almost like he was ready for it. God he hoped Natasha hadn’t picked up on it but by the look, she was giving him now said differently though. Swallowing thickly, he ran his tongue over the exterior of his lips almost being able to taste her lips ~ in the least weird way possible.

With the parting of their lips, the two were left just gazing into one another eyes. Though sometimes his eyes would divert to a different part of her face whether that be her lips, cheeks or nose. He managed to pick up the light blush that ran across her cheekbones, something that she was obviously trying to hide for him or the fact her lips ran bright red. It was only until Clint finally said something that the silence that had fallen between them was sliced in half.

Clearing his throat softly, he ran his tongue across his lower lips before glancing back towards her finally. “Thanks,” He breathed out, insinuating the thank you for saving them from being caught. They still had a little while until their flight was due to leave it had been delayed so they had plenty of time to make their way towards a terminal.

“Anything for the mission...” Nat responded, clearing her throat and wiping her lips with a finger to get the last bits of his taste off of them. This time she had very little control over the hot flushes that took over her face, leaving her face to be much redder than she desired but for now she chose not to focus on that. 

The two agents mosied their way through the rest of the airport with a fair amount of ease, which came to him as a surprise considering what they had just been through. Though that being said he wouldn’t mind an excuse for more public affection. Now that was a sad reality, just the fact that he craved the most lacklustre form of affection said it all. 

It wasn’t long until they had managed to make their way through the rest of the airport and towards their terminal. While it was almost saddening that their mission was slowly coming to a close, he couldn’t be happier to leave this country as agents. Maybe one day, as Tasha said, they’d be able to return but rather as Agents Romanoff and Barton but just as Nat and Clint. That would be nice but it was a fool’s game to play make-believe in this kinda job.

A callout rang through the airport informing them that their plane was ready for boarding, they were so close and yet it felt so far. Minutes later the two were sat comfortably on the plane, Natasha in the window and Clint right next to her. He didn’t dare attempt to strike up a conversation because for one he didn’t even know what they would talk about and two Natasha didn’t seem to be in the talking mood but was ever? That was a question he didn’t know if he was ever going to get the answer to. So instead he kept his thoughts to himself, which was pretty difficult for him but he kept them inside especially considering the nature of those thoughts. Every so often he would sneak a glance to his side to check on Natasha, making sure she hadn’t thrown herself out of the window or anything of the sort.

It was only a couple checks in that he spotted her sleeping soundly. The sight brought a smile back of his lips as he just stared at her, guilt-free knowing that she couldn’t see him do so. “I know you’re asleep, and that’s probably why I’ve decided to say this now, but thank you. Thanks for trusting me enough to do this with you. It means a lot, well I mean you mean a lot to me. Maybe more than you know. I’ll stop talking now but just know this means the world to me” He said in a hushed tone, voicing the small thoughts he refused to admit in her consciousness. 

Natasha closed her eyes as soon as she had the chance, not exactly wanting to talk to her partner until they were back on the ground. Unfortunately, Clint had assumed she was asleep meaning that he had started to talk to her not being aware that she could hear everything he was saying. Not that she was complaining because it gave her an insight of what he was really thinking. He knew exactly what she’d paid to hear this, to have this against him, but secretly to rejoice when she’d be alone in her apartment. There were only a few people Natasha got along with, and out of all of them Clint was the person she could work with best. Not only work with, but be with too. 

The redhead might not always, or ever, show it to him, but his presence was always welcome. He was always welcome around her. He was an idiot for sure, one who talked way too much and always had a bad joke prepared, but he was the idiot who succeeded to cheer her up whenever there was the need for it, or gave her an ear whenever she needed it. No one knew about her thoughts, emotions. It was only him to whom she opened up now and then, and this should actually give him a hint of how much she really liked him.

The rest of the flight dragged out for another couple of hours, something he wasn’t exactly happy about but there were no complaints for now. He was saving those for once they were reunited with American soil. Finally, they touched back down meaning they were back in America. A grin stretched across his lips as he turned to his partner to shake her shoulder so she would look at him. “You sense that Nat? I can already tell we are back, I don’t even need someone to tell me I just know it” He said as he leaned over her to look out of the window, the airport was now coming into sight before the plane came to a complete stop once reaching the terminal. 

‘Mhhm... I can tell it too. Your America senses must be tingling.’ She answered with a light grumble, shoving him a bit away from her so she could sit up properly, only to stare at his shirt right in front of her eyes. Together they eventually left the plane and touched american ground, and she could instantly tell that he was feeling much better, less uncomfortable. 

“Damn does it feel good to be back. Not that I didn’t like Russia and it’s scary men but you know if I stay away for too long I might pop a blood vessel” He joked as he finally stepped into the airport. Their first agenda would be locating their bags.

‘You know I won’t judge you to tell me your true thoughts about Russia. It’s not like I’d try to defend it like you as an american would defend your country. There’s really nothing but my heritage that connects me to this country.’ Touching american ground meant going back to old standards, and that meant she could go back to being herself, the usual Natasha. The not-so-funny-but-if-you-get-to-know-her-better-actually-amusing Natasha.

Their bags already passed the pick-up area twice before they made it there, but with the third appearance they managed to grab all their stuff and walk towards the exit. Here, back at home, they were safe again. At least for a while, until they would go on their next risky mission. Natasha managed to delete all her files, but got a copy of them just for herself, and those she’d study in privacy, to find out things she might not even know about herself. Things that had been done to her but never given the knowledge about. 

Without telling him how thankful she was again, because he’d probably only tell her she didn’t have to thank him, their ways eventually parted, each of them going their route to their own apartment. But it wouldn’t be a long parting. In the morning there was work waiting for them at the SHIELD headquarters, as usual, may it be the training of new agents or even a new mission. Whatever it was, Natasha would be ready, and she was sure Clint would be too.

Upon reaching the outside of the airport, Clint turned to Natasha wanting to say a few more words befire the two parted their ways - he always had to finish of a somewhat light note. “Well then, I will see you tomorrow. Until then I guess I’ll go back to being your friendly neighbourhood Hawk-Guy”


	5. Can't a man get lipstick on his tie?

It had been a while since Clint had been on what he classified a ‘proper’ S.H.I.E.L.D. mission. After everything that had gone down in New York, S.H.I.E.L.D. had halted the majority of the mainstream missions in order to focus agents to clean up the damage that had been caused in the process of saving the world - y’know the usual. And while it was great the organisation was doing their best to clean up the mess they had caused it was a pain for field agents like Barton who wanted nothing to do with a broomstick. 

The closest thing to real action he had gotten was the surprise trip himself and Romanoff had taken a month back but even then that was a personal mission - one that he had to use his annual leave for … not that he was salty about that or anything. A real mission was exactly what he needed and it was almost like the universe was listening to his pleads because in the span of a week one fell right into his lap.

Paris. That was the main word that stuck out to him as he flipped through the annoying long briefing he had been handed only minutes ago. “Paris huh? Sounds like a lovely vacation spot, wouldn’t mind spending the weekend there,” He mumbled to himself as he skimmed the first page before snapping it shut. Looked like a pretty basic mission. Sneak into a charity gala, get the dirt they needed and get out plus maybe removing the bad guy but that was a maybe. He didn’t need to know every little detail about everything as long as he knew their target and their goal the rest of the mission was malleable meaning he could do it however he pleased, even if his superiors disagreed with his methods he still got the job done. 

The other important thing he picked up from his brief reading was that the other agent he would be working with was no other than his ‘partner in crime’ Natasha Romanoff, though he was pretty sure she would disapprove of that nickname. At least he didn’t have to worry about his partner getting fed up with him, Nat had been dealing with him for nearly five years now so what was the harm in one more mission right? As long as nothing happened like Moscow, he should be fine. No distractions this time, he was going to be completely focused on their goal and nothing else. Nothing at all … though he couldn’t help but wonder how long that would last.

Natasha on the other hand had a different approach to how she prepared for missions - one that she would consider much more efficient than the method Barton had shown her. Though upon the day she collected her mission brief, there were other things on her mind. Natasha now had all the information she needed from a month ago. To say she didn’t regret copying them on a flash drive would be a lie, but the truth was always hard to swallow. 

She had looked through several types of documents and other footage for more than a week, often sitting in front of her laptop till late nights. Disturbing was the perfect word to describe her thoughts on what she found out. What she didn’t know about her own life. What had been wiped from her memory, thought to be safe in their facility. Clint never had to find out about this. The redhead wasn’t sure how he’d react, what he’d do if he found out that they practically put themselves into danger for nothing. Their mission was to delete her data, but all she did was keeping it alive, in her custody. The guilt of knowing was slowly eating her up so a mission was exactly what she needed right now.  
Her gaze ran over the briefing papers she received in the morning, reading through every single word until she arrived at the page where the agents were named. Her expression immediately turned rather serious, even slightly annoyed, as she read the name of the agent who’d be by her side. Barton. Of course it would be Barton. Who else could go on a mission with her? It was like he hacked into the system to team himself up with her every time a mission was about to be dispensed. If that were true she honestly wouldn’t be surprised.

Unlike Clint, Natasha knew this ‘trip’ would be more unnerving than any other. It wasn’t just an infiltration, in and out within a minute, and back to the headquarters. No. This was different. This was more schemed by their supervisors. Clint and Natasha wouldn’t be Clint and Natasha during their stay in Paris. They had fake identities, fake backgrounds, and had to act like them. Clint, the striving businessman who was climbing up the ladder as fast as no one ever did before, and Natasha his beloved wife, supermodel and brand ambassador of the company.

Of course, they went for the supermodel role, because that’s all they could come up with. Brains who were able to hack a whole security system of different governments, who could come up with plans working well in every aspect, but to pick a normal job their brain cells weren’t good enough. However, she had to accept it. And there was one advantage. Natasha didn’t have to educate herself to fake a job she never heard of before. This would be all about looks. Simple.

A couple of days passed by and it was the day that the two were set up to leave. Everything had been organised for them, all they needed to do was get on the plane and boom Paris. For once the archer was somewhat prepared for their mission, he had prepacked and everything. He was even early to the air hanger, something that Barton almost never did. 

The one benefit of going on a proper S.H.I.E.L.D. mission was the fact that they could fly in privately. No need for fake IDs or inappropriately placed distraction kisses though he couldn’t say he would mind the latter. It wasn’t long before the two had been shipped off into a private jet where they were well on their way to Paris.

The flight went pretty smoothly considering he was passed out for the rest of it and for that he was pretty thankful for. Hours passed and the two agents eventually touched down in France. It was only late afternoon meaning they had plenty of time to get from the airport and to their hotel to prepare for the next day.

Both S.H.I.E.L.D. agents got off the plane and were escorted to the hotel they would be staying in for a couple of nights. It wasn’t a bad deal they had here, at least this time they wouldn’t be living in squalor where the walls didn’t peel or were covered in mould. After grabbing their belongs, Barton and Romanoff hauled their belongings inside the somewhat decent hotel they had been holed up in. 

“Well, I must say this isn’t bad even for S.H.I.E.L.D. standards. Look at that we even have somewhat of a balcony” Clint mused as he pushed open their hotel room door as he took in the surroundings. Natasha smiled as she walked in, peering out of the door that lead to the balcony just as he mentioned it, nodding with approval as she did so.

“You should take notes Romanoff, this is the kinda thing I’m expecting if you ask me to go on a mission,” He said with a grin before taking another step inside the hotel room before dumping his bags on one of the two queen beds. “So how about this, the fantastic duo back at it again? Ehh still working on the name but you get the idea. What is this like our first proper S.H.I.E.L.D. mission in a year or so? You gotta be at least a tiny bit excited to be back in the game” Clint said with his back turned to her as he started to open up his bags and go through them. “At least I can say I am. No shame to admit I like sneaking around peoples backs, at least I have the guts to say it,” He teased as he smirked over his shoulder.

‘The difference is, I choose my made-up identities wisely. They just do whatever they think might work well, such as a rich dick married to his supermodel wife. I couldn’t have thought of anything better. And it’s not like I’ve asked you out on a date and invited you to join me in my apartment back in Moscow. Just went with the least conspicuous location I could find.’ She said as she walked over to the other bed and dumped her bags upon it. ‘Well, it isn’t that bad. Now you just have to learn how to behave like a rich man, because behaving like a dick shouldn’t be a problem for you, should it?’

Clint turned around to look at Natasha when she stated that she chose her made-up identities fairly well and he cocked his eyebrow up at her as she did so. “Oh is that so? So you’re telling me ‘Natalie Rushman’ is a good fake identity? Oh, don’t get me wrong the name is great but doesn’t it sound like someone you know? Maybe oh I dunno a Natasha Romanoff. If the bad guys knew our names and saw that fake name there is no way they’d ever be able to suspect it’s you!” Clint said in the most sarcastic tone he could summon up, all while he had a grin plastered over his face. 

“No hate to Natalie though, she is pretty cool it’s just a shame her name sucks,” He said, teasing of course but he still found it funny that one of her most used cover names was so close to the original. Whether that was her doing or S.H.I.E.L.D.s he was still going to mock her for it. The archer pouted ever so slightly as Natasha reminded him that she hadn’t taken him on a date back when they went to Moscow. 

“Well yeah, I know that much, as much as you wished it was a date but still it’s the thought that counts. I expect to have a five-star experience everywhere I go. What can’t a man just want to be wined and dined? That’s all I want,” He said as a soft chuckle escaped his lips. “And inconspicuous? There is no way they would have expected us to hole up in some fancy hotel. All I’m saying is this is the sort of thing I’m expecting whether you ask me out on a date or out on a mission,” Clint said with a grin before moving to rummage through his bags.

‘Natalie is the perfect disguise. Never did anyone ever notice anything about it. In and out, that’s how my missions as her went. No complications, no fights. Only when you happen to be by my side, it seems to be a bad idea operating as Natalie. Maybe we should drop tonight’s mission and enjoy the evening in another way. Could give you your five-star dinner, and whatever you wish.’ She smirked, knowing very well that such a thing wasn’t going to happen. At least not until they returned from their mission, successful. Clint continued to whine about the fact he wasn’t a dick. Of course, he didn’t agree to what she said, but how would he know? No, he wasn’t a dick, but funny... wasn’t the perfect phrase either.

Clint lifted his head and cocked his eyebrow up at the last part of her sentence, especially when she said and whatever you wish because immediately his brain went to all the wrong places. He knew that wasn’t what she meant … or at least he was pretty sure that was the case. “Whatever else you say? So that means anything right?” He teased with the raise of his eyebrow. Shaking his head he quickly snapped out of the unrealistic situation that was playing through his mind before clearing his throat with the shake of his head.

“Oh hell no. You’ve got to be kidding me,” Clint said as he looked into one of the S.H.I.E.L.D. issued bags only to pull out a large article of clothing. “I’m not wearing this,” He stated as he turned around revealing a pressed suit that had to be worth at least a couple thousand dollars. “I’m gonna look like a clown in this thing!” He exclaimed as he shared looks between Natasha and the suit on his arm. 

She came closer, patting his shoulder with one hand before she opened up the bag that had been prepared for her by SHIELD and pulled out a black dress that didn’t look too bad at all. She shrugged, placing it on her bed for the night. “At least they stuck to my colours. Appreciated a lot.” Pulling out the rest, she soon found herself standing in front of a full attire for a gala night. A gala for the rich and beautiful, which their target would attend too. Or more like the target of whom they had to ‘steal’ something.

“Someone clearly favours you over me. Secret admirer huh? Or even worse a boyfriend?” He said with a laugh as he wiggled his eyebrows. While he laughed past his own comment, he was hoping she didn’t have any of the sorts but that was just the weird jealousy he had for wanting to be the only man in her life. “Looks like I drew the short straw then. Eh at least one of us will look good tonight” He joked with the corners of his lips turning upwards ever so slightly.

‘So, we’re going in as planned? Go in, you distract him, pour on your charm while I look for the jackpot, head out.’ Natasha checked if he had read the full briefing or just skipped through the papers as he usually did. The jobs were actually switched, her being the one who was supposed to distract the target, most likely because it was a man, while Clint would grab what they needed. 

Clint’s attention peaked when she asked him if they were going to do things as planned, though of course, he had only skimmed through the briefing meaning he only half understood what it was what they were doing so he assumed whatever that was coming out of Natasha’s mouth was true. “Oh yeah of course. I mean I read the briefing so I’d know. If the dude swings that way I think I’ll have a couple of moves up my sleeve. Though it’s been a while since I’ve hit on a dude so I might be a little rusty but I always pull through don’t you worry” Clint said with a smirk, already plotting the sort of things he was going to do and say to their target enough to distract him.

Laughter poured out of the redhead’s mouth as Clint proclaimed very confidently about how he was going to woo the target. ‘You worry me sometimes Barton. You know it really wouldn’t hurt for you to actually read the briefing every once in a while. We’ll try to get a look at the situation and a feeling of the man we’re looking for, then we’ll decide who’ll give it a shot. Though my money is on me,’

“Right … I uh knew that of course. I was just testing you and you passed so well done! Anyway, we better start getting ready, it’s already getting dark and I’m not sure rich people like it when your late,” Barton uttered as he reached back in his bag to get the rest of his clothes.

The other agent simply nodded as she gathered the rest of her outfit for the night before walking to the bathroom, taking one last look at Barton before shutting the door.

As soon as she disappeared behind the wall, he didn’t waste another second to start stripping out of his clothes because he needed the time to figure out how to put on a tuxedo. Sure he had worn a suit before but nothing as complex as a proper tuxedo meaning he needed the time to work out how to tie a bowtie. It only took Clint a couple of minutes to get the main part of the suit on, the trousers and shirt but the bowtie was a struggle. “Hey Nat, you wouldn’t know how to tie a bowtie, would you?! I uhm think I need a hand,” He called out loud enough so she could hear him from the bathroom.

Once the bathroom door fell in its lock, Natasha remained silent for a short moment, listening to what was going on outside the room. She could swear she heard him cursing under his breath, which brought a smile on her lips and caused her to shake her head with a soft chuckle. She didn’t waste another second and in a couple of minutes, she was fully kitted in the black dress she had been supplied with before promptly exiting the bathroom.

During the time Nat had been in the bathroom, Clint had actually managed to tie the bowtie and was adjusting it in the mirror before he heard the bathroom door open to which he swung his body in the direction of the bathroom only to be frozen in his spot. Clint tugged at his bowtie a little too hard causing the whole knot to unravel in his hands, making the past five minutes useless.

Clint’s eyes immediately locked onto Natasha as she stepped out of the bathroom wearing the black dress that she had been supplied with. He had seen her dressed up before but that had been years ago and this time it just felt different. The archer wasn’t hiding the fact he was staring as he parted his lips in hopes that his brain would conjure up the words to spit out but nothing came leaving him at a loss for words all while he stared at her. 

A lump formed in the back of his throat as he suddenly diverted his gaze, feeling himself get flustered just by the sight of her - something that didn’t happen to Clint Barton. “Uhm you look great. This guy is pretty lucky to be married to you” He said with a slight smile before holding up the bowtie he had managed to pull off. “I uh had some troubles with my bowtie. You wouldn’t mind giving me a hand right?” He questioned her as he looked back over to her. If she was going to look like that all evening, he was going to have trouble focusing on the target.

Natasha turned around completely and watched him, well aware that he was staring all the time. Windows at night could be perfectly used as mirrors too. She brushed a hand through her hair, ruffling through it a last time before she took a few steps closer to him, smiling and tilting her head slightly. ‘You look good yourself. Like a gentleman. This is the first time I see you in a tuxedo... you should wear them more often.’ She wiggled her eyebrows as she inched closer.

Swallowing he stayed still while she approached him, seemingly with the means of giving him a hand with the bowtie he was still struggling to tie around his neck. “Oh is that so? Maybe I’ll wear them more often, just for you though and only if you promise to crack out some of those dresses on occasion” He said with a wink. He was just harmlessly flirting, or at least that’s what he thought he was trying to do.

‘What sort of wife would I be to let my husband down. Of course, I can give you a hand, honey. Hold still.” Nat said, slipping into a slight accent as she brought both hands up to his neck and untied the bowtie he messed up in the process of trying it on his own. Lifting his chin with a finger, the female agent brought her hands around his neck, leaning close to him for a short while before she returned them to his front, focusing on the bowtie.

The pet name completely threw him off guard as he did a double-take to check that was what she had actually said but it seemed like she was fitting into her role just fine. Now, this was definitely something he could get used to. Up until she touched his chin with her finger he had been keeping eye contact with her but then he tilted his head upwards to give her the chance to tie it properly around his neck. He did his best to avoid eye contact while she tied it around her neck because he was struggling for words as is.

It took her a couple of seconds, maybe a bit more than a minute to finish, patting it carefully as it hung in place perfectly. ‘That’s it. Looking good as never before.’ She teased, turning around again to head back to the table and eventually get ready for the night.

Frowning slightly, Clint narrowed his eyes in her direction as he crossed his arms over his chest. “Hey now, don’t objectify me. I know I look good but c’mon my eyes are up here,” He joked as he pouted his lips ever so slightly.

‘You can’t complain about me staring because I’ve seen Emily staring at you every time we walked past the training area. Maybe you should ask her out then, she’s possibly willing to give you a ride into your little fantasy world.’ Emily was just a trainee in her first year, drooling after Clint like most girls who didn’t know the archer a little better did. Natasha always saw them, but Clint didn’t seem to notice, or only when it was too late. However, she wouldn’t take that from him, seeing that it boosted his confidence on a level comparable to the clouds.

“Gross no. Why did you have to phrase it like that?! Me and Emily are a no go. I mean come on I could be her dad!” Clint exclaimed before pausing to do the math of misusing her age from his before resuming his argument. “Yeah because I was totally getting girls at age twelve but that’s beside the point. I wouldn’t be able to do that even if I wanted to because I am pretty sure you scare her. You scare off pretty much anyone who even tries to get close,” He scoffed with the shake of his head though not being able to stop the smile that was quickly invading his lower face.

‘I don’t scare them…’ She mumbled, barely, but still audible for Clint. ‘They’re just sissies... nothing else.’

Lifting the dress slightly, she revealed a black thigh band already wrapped around her thigh, pulled a knife out the bag and attached it to the band. It had to be flat due to the tightness of the dress, there was no way she could wear anything on her body that was slightly bigger. It would surely shine through. For that she had a better option. A purse, just big enough to fit one of her trademark pistols and a second magazine, just in case. 

Finishing all that up, the redhead turned around again and leaned with her bottom against the table, staring at Clint. ‘Ready when you are, just the shoes. Though, what am I to expect? Did my beloved man order a simple taxi? Or are you driving us in a Ferrari? Limousine?’

A laugh left his lips before quickly scoffing at her. “Wow, it’s almost like we’re not even married! I can’t believe you’d even consider the fact I’d order you a taxi. No, my dear tonight we will be riding in style. And by that, I mean an overpriced car that I don’t know the name of but it has a loud engine so I don’t exactly care” He said with a grin before looking around the room for his shoes before eventually slipping them on. Clint was finding it easy to slip into this facade of being husband and wife, it was almost too easy in fact. “Now let’s get this over and done with shall we? Gotta lot of dancing ahead of us, I hope you came prepared,” He said with a grin before walking towards the door and holding it open for her.

‘You can dance? I always thought you were more the disco dancing type of man. You know, like shaking the whole body without coordination and the like.’ Natasha teased, leaning a little closer to his side as she headed out of the room in order to head right for the garage. 

As the two manoeuvred themselves out of their hotel room, he paused in speaking as she questioned his ability to dance. “Hell yeah, I can dance. Well, you’re going to have to be the judge of how well but I’m not that bad when it comes to proper dancing, you know the Tango and stuff like that. And hey you can’t judge me on my dancing until you’ve seen it. For all I know you’re going to tread on my feet all evening,” He retorted with a chuckle as they walked into the garage together.

Upon arriving at the garage, it was clear that their car was the most expensive-looking one. He didn’t know the name of it but it was a sleek cherry coloured car and had rich written all over it.

“Now did the husband disappoint or what?” He asked with a smile before unlocking the car and walking around to the passenger’s side before opening the door and holding it open for her. Once she was settled inside he was quick to shut the door behind her and loop around to climb into the driver’s seat. “Oh baby this is a nice car,” He mumbled to himself as he ran his hands over the steering wheel and looked over at Natasha. “Now to avoid what happened last time I checked which side to drive on so you don’t have to worry about that,” He teased before buckling in and starting the car. The venue was only twenty minutes or so away but it was still nice the fact that they got to ride in style. “I’ve always wanted to drive one of these” He muttered to himself as he manoeuvred the car out of the garage.

‘No disappointment at all. I didn’t know S.H.I.E.L.D. thought of this mission to be that important to spend so much money on a car for a disguise. I think I’m going to enjoy this,’ She said with a smirk before settling into the passenger seat.

“Well I mean they have to go out for their best agents. I wouldn’t really expect anything less than such extremities,” Clint said with a smirk before parting ways with Natasha to climb into the car. “I’m glad you like it though,” 

Without any more hesitation, the two were quickly on their way to the party that they had been ‘invited’ to. With a car like this, it only took ten minutes, not even that, to get to their destination especially since Clint might have been speeding just a little. “Well, what do they say? Don’t ask for permission, ask for forgiveness?” He yelled over the roar over the engine with a grin before finally parking up in front of the magnificent mansion in which was hosting tonight’s party.

Glancing over to Natasha, Clint frowned. The two had arrived at yet she was still sat in her seat without moving an inch. Raising his eyebrow in her direction he went to question whatever it was that she was doing. “Uh, we’re here? What are you waiting for?” He asked only for Natasha to smirk and settle back into her chair which finally lead for Clint to pick up on the hint. 

“Wow, really? You’re going to make me come all the way over to your side in order to open the door for you.” He grumbled as he did exactly that before holding the car door open for her. “Happy?” He questioned as he shut the door and locked the car.

‘You’re the owner of a billion-dollar company and husband of a top model, of course, I expect you to open my door. As well as caviar for dinner, the most expensive wine to pour it down, and afterwards some nice jewellery as a gift, only because you love me so much.’ She smirked more, climbing out the car, her hands wrapped around her little purse she found more than obstructive but fitting their endeavour. ‘Thank you, darling.’ She whispered, waiting for him to shut the door, lock the car and eventually join her side, which he then did.

“Ahhh okay. So you want to be wined and dined? Alright, I can do that. Though caviar? As in the fish eggs? I mean if that’s your thing but that’s hella expensive … Which is fine because I am a billionaire who can totally afford that stuff,” Clint said quickly, throwing side glances around to the people nearby making sure he was keeping up appearances even if people were listening in to their conversation. “Jewellery too huh? You know what I’ve got the perfect piece in mind! An arrow necklace. You know to commemorate me. Of course, I’ll make sure it has the biggest diamond you could imagine, only the best for you,” Clint said smirking, clearly joking about his choice of jewellery for her. Though the smirk was quickly replaced by a genuine smile when she thanked him for helping her out of the car which was paired along with the use of darling.

Wrapping an arm around Natasha’s waist, he didn’t even give her a chance to react to what he had just said as he pulled her towards the small line that was forming outside the front of the mansion. “Do you think I should do an accent or will that be a bit too much? I think I’ll try and accent, what about English?” He questioned with a grin before it was finally their time to head on inside. “Hello my name is uhm James Carver and this is my wife … Mrs Carver,” He said in an awful British accent to which got him an odd look from the bouncer. “Sorry, the accent was a joke don’t mind that,” Clint quickly interjected with a chuckle before sharing a nervous glance with Natasha. 

The bulky man looked at them in confusion, a brow raised. Natasha met Clint’s nervous look and answered with a laugh to ease the awkward situation, a hand rested upon his chest, slightly bent forward. ‘Always so funny…’ She kept laughing, though it soon died down once they were allowed inside. ‘So funny…’ The moment they stepped through the entrance, Natasha gazed through the room, starting her work for the evening. While they could enjoy the advantages of their fake identity, they still had to think about what they came for.

As soon as they stepped inside they were greeted with hundreds of guests that were already mingling over alcoholic beverages but there was a large gap in the middle of the room where the dance floor was and because there was no music, well there was no one dancing there just yet. “Right I say we just try and blend in with the crowd first, maybe get some drinks and do some dancing. But then of course you know to do our job,” Clint suggested as he glanced around the room for a drinks table and as soon as he spotted one he pulled away from Natasha to get them drinks. 

A minute or so passed and he returned back to her side with two glasses of some expensive champagne. Handing her one he sipped at his before pulling a sort of face. “That is not good but it’s better than nothing I guess,” Clint said before turning his body towards her. “So how does it feel to be married to me? Pretty great right?” He questioned with a grin slapped over his face.

Natasha reached out once Clint returned, taking a glass from him, carefully weighing it in her grip. ‘Better than nothing,’ She answered, her eyes rolling the moment he asked his next question. ‘I could think of better situations, but as long as we get what we came for I’ll try to enjoy my husband’s company as much as I can.’ She raised her brows a mere second, smiling softly for two, then returned her view on the crowd. ‘He’s not here, at least I think so because I couldn’t spot him yet. Maybe there’s another floor with more guests, or he’s in something like a VIP lounge or the like.’ The redhead shrugged, taking a step forth towards Clint. ‘On a successful evening.’ She raised her glass, waiting for him to clink them and take their first sip of many that were to follow.

“Oh trust me I’m going to make sure that you have a good time and enjoy my company.” He said with a grin before clinking their glasses once again. “To a good evening and a long marriage,” He mused before bringing up the glass to his lips and swiftly emptying its contents into his mouth. “Bleh. That is proof that expensive alcohol is not better than the cheap stuff,” He grumbled as he set down his glass on the table next to them. 

“If we are going to have any chance getting that information, he’s gonna need to be down here otherwise there’s no way we can get that data without being noticed. We shall play the waiting game. But you know what that means?” The archer asked as he turned around to look back at Nat. “Care to dance m’lady?” Clint asked as he took a couple of steps towards the dance floor with his hand outstretched towards her. 

There was practically no one dancing but there was dancing music playing throughout the hall. Plus of they started dancing, it wouldn’t be long until other people joined in and they’d have the perfect crowd to cover their disappearance. “And I promise not to step on your toes, I’ve been taking lessons. Just for you, I swear,” Barton said, the corners of his lips turning up into a smile as he urged her to follow him.

Her attention was brought back to her partner as he asked for a dance, catching her unprepared and rather not ready to dance already. ‘Oh, I think I-’ She was interrupted by the promise to not be stepped on her toes, plus the transition to a more danceable song as Careless Whisper began to flow through the speakers which was an interesting choice and yet fitting at the same time.

Placing her glass next to his on the table, she sighed lightly, closing her eyes for a second until she eventually accepted his offer or more of a prompt. ‘These shoes will kill my feet anyway, so I’m sure that won’t make much of a change.’ She raised a brow, still grinning slightly, then reached out to take his hand and follow him to the dance floor. They were the only ones yet, but surely would attract some other couples too, at least she hoped so. All eyes laid on Clint and her would definitely be very uncomfortable and attract unwanted attention. Her left hand glided up to rest on his shoulder while the other met his left hand, holding it softly. Her eyes shifted over to him, making eye contact as the song started to get into a rhythm, and once he’d lead, she’d follow. At least she would find out if he really practised or just said this to lure her on the dance floor.

“Well if your feet get any worse we can always swap. I’ll tell you now that I look stunning in heels,” Clint said with a smirk before winking at her as he lead her towards the dance floor. Coming to a stop, he waited for her to make the first move by placing her hand on his shoulder and holding his hand. 

Stepping forward, he gently placed his hand just above her waist before shifting his hand so it could more comfortably rest in hers. The smile on his face only grew when the song suddenly changed to something much more romantic and danceable. Laughing softly he lowered his gaze to meet hers. “Well, then this is an interesting song. You know I used to blast this song on repeat in the shower? I even know some of the words one sec…” He said as he carefully started to sway with her, taking a step every once in a while as he waited for the chorus to kick in. 

“... I’m never gonna dance again, guilty feet blah blah rhythm. Though it’s easy to pretend, I know you’re not a fool. I should have known better than to cheat a friend And waste a chance that I’d been given. So I’m never gonna dance again, the way I danced with you!!!!!” Clint sang with a grin, missing a couple of the words as he did so as he hadn’t heard it in quite the while. "I am an expert at karaoke nights," He said smirking.

Natasha felt heat rush to her cheeks from embarrassment as Clint suddenly burst out into song. It was bad enough that they had basically everyone’s eyes on them and now Clint was singing. She was thankful he had managed to shut up but that didn’t stop her from grinning up at him. ‘While I appreciate your beautiful singing Clint, you might wanna tone it down. Everyone is already looking at us but later you can still give me a private show if you’re interested?’ She whispered with a slight smirk.

Huffing out a breath of air, Clint just shrugged at her before eventually nodding. “And a show is exactly what you’re going to get,” He said with a grin.

As the song began to pick up, so did his speed of dancing as he was extra careful not to step on her toes as they travelled the whole of the dancefloor in tune to the song. When it got the middle of the song he went a little risky and pulled back from her waist as he lifted her arm into the air before spinning her around a couple of times. Once she had stopped spinning he quickly stepped in closer to her than before, and placed his hand on her lower back this time. 

Pulling her closer, he rested the lower half of his face against the side of her head so he could whisper to her without looking too suspicious. “What do you think of my moves? Pretty sexy right?” He whispered with a grin as he rocked the two of them back and forth as they danced. Glancing around the room he noticed that the two of them were still the only ones on the dance floor. “I’m not sure if we are selling this Tasha … All eyes are on us but still they are all in their seats,” He whispered as he pulled his head back slightly so he could look at her in the eyes. 

It was an odd feeling being this close to her, not that it was exactly a bad thing of course because moments like these between them were stupidly rare so he was just trying his hardest to let himself live in the moment. But that being said his mind and heart was racing so he was just trying his hardest not to overthink every movement she made. He had to stay focused. Or at least try to … All that could be asked of him was to try right?

Tightening her grip on Clint, she swallowed as her eyes flickered around the room. While there was music playing in the background, that didn’t seem to inspire any of the other couples nor did their enthusiastic dancing meaning that he was right. They needed to spruce things up a bit, though the question was if they’d manage to do something to get people up on their feet.

Forcing her line of eyesight up to meet his she nodded, trying not to think about how close they were to the other or where his hands were because she really needed to concentrate at the task at hand. ‘Alright then, dip me. You know like they do on those professional shows?’ She whispered harshly, knowing that the two of them needed this distraction in order to continue with their mission.

“Wait what dip you? I mean I can’t promise I won’t drop you but I guess I’ll do it as a finisher” He whispered back as he continued to dance with her in time with the music as they still had a little left of the song to go. Surprisingly, neither of the two trod on the other’s feet and in other circumstances, he would have classified their dancing as somewhat beautiful but now wasn’t the time for that sort of thing.

Eventually, the song was coming to an end, so in preparation, Clint made sure that he had a tight grip on her hand while moving his other to support her upper back. And just in time with the final riff of the song, he carefully lunged forward and lowered Natasha until she practically only being supported with his hand. Staring down at her, he couldn’t help but smile at his triumph as she did the exact same thing. 

Upon helping her back up, the people around them erupted into applause, which was something that took both agents by surprise. Next thing they new partners were pulling their other halves toward the dance floor as another song began to play. “Holy shit that actually worked, nicely done Nat,” Clint breathed out with an amazed look as he took a proper look around the people who had crowded around them.

Natasha, on the other hand, didn’t waste another second as she grabbed Clint’s hand and tugged him towards the stairs which lead up to the VIP lounge. The guards had moved in order to get closer to the large crowd now forming on the dance floor. ‘Not a bad distraction Barton,’ She said with the rise of her eyebrows before quickly heading up the stairs.

Clint smirked at her remark as he was quickly on her tail, both of them were up on the landing in a matter of seconds. All that was left to do was figure out how on earth they were going to find this VIP lounge because this place was massive. They could only hope that it was somewhere nearby because if it wasn’t, well to be quite frank they were utterly screwed.

‘I took a look at the floor plan before arriving here but it didn’t mention another lounge. That means either there isn’t one or there is one but the sorts of things that go down in that place is for the exclusive only. Who knows what sort of shit we’ll end up finding there,’ She grumbled as she walked the length of the corridor peeking around the corner in hopes of spotting something that might lead them closer to the lounge but instead all she saw was an armed guard only seconds away from them.

There was very little that they could say which would excuse them so she acted on the first thing that was on her mind. Quickly snapping back behind the corner, she looked up at Clint and met his eyes before extending her arms and pressing her palms against his chest so his back laid flat against the wall. She didn’t have time to explain what was happening but got the feeling he’d get the gist, at least he didn’t have any problems the last time that this had happened. Snaking her hands up around his neck, she quickly brought his head down to hers so she could meet their lips in a heated kiss just in time for the guard to turn the corner. In almost an instant she felt two hands press against her hips so she assumed Clint had understood the meaning behind her message.

The two kissed for what felt like an eternity but was in fact only around ten seconds before the guard who was stood there watching cleared his throat causing Nat to finally pull back. The look on Clint’s face was priceless, his lips were now tinted red from her lipstick and he was still staring at her unsure of what had just happened to which he quickly snapped out of

‘Oh I’m sorry sir, my husband and I were on our way to the bathrooms to uhm … well freshen up per se. Maybe we should leave that for later though, what do you think honey?’ Natasha asked with a slight accent, wrapping her arm around his waist before reaching up to wipe some of her red lipstick from his collar.

Clint looked down at Nat and then back up at the guard before breaking out into a smile. “Well if you insist dear but I was looking forward to freshening up but we should probably head back to the lounge. Don’t want to keep everyone waiting because we’d probably be gone for a while” He said with a smirk which caused the other man to laugh and nod at the two. _’I catch your drift, let me escort you two back. Who knows what sort of people are roaming these calls’_ The guard said an motioned for the couple to follow him. Sharing some odd looks, the two just shrugged before following the guard considering that their situation could not have gone any better.

Taking in a deep breath, both of them followed the guard which gave both of them enough time to process what had just happened. Once again Clint had been completely taken aback by Nat’s kiss despite her already doing it once before. The kiss itself was great, there was no doubt about it that Natasha was an excellent kisser but whilst it was happening it was hard to think about anything but her. The sweetness of her perfume filled his nostrils whilst the taste of her lips lingered on his tongue. He may or may not have gotten a little _too_ into the kiss but that wasn’t exactly his fault. What did she expect if she was going to suddenly push him against a wall and make out with him? Probably not what had actually happened but it wasn’t like they were ever going to discuss it ever again.

After a couple of minutes of walking, they eventually arrived at what they could only assume was the VIP Longue considering the sorts of things all over the place. In one corner there were a variety of white powders lined up on the table and the other an intense poker game going on. But the most important thing was that their target was smack bang in the middle enjoying a drink.

Sharing glances between the other agent, they nodded before making a beeline straight for him. The plan was simple. Natasha would flirt with him, get close enough to lift the thumb drive he was carrying before delivering it to Clint who would take it and copy it in the other room before returning it for her to put it back where she found it. Simple. Or at least that’s how it should be. 

Natasha was first to approach the man with Clint quickly on her tail but making sure to keep his distance so she had the room to do her thing. ‘So what’s a handsome man like you drinking all alone?’ She asked as she leant up against the table. The man looked up at Nat before chuckling and taking another swig of his drink. _‘Well there missy I’ve been waiting for the right person to come along’_ He said with a smirk. ‘Oh is that so? I’ll be more than happy to accompany you. I’m sure my husband won’t mind’ She said as she smiled over to Clint.

The business man’s eyes travelled over to where Clint stood before raising his eyebrows. _‘Well I hate to be the bearer of bad news darlin’ but I think I’d rather have your husbands company’_ He said as he pulled out a chair next to him, patting it in order to get Clint to sit next to him.

A smug look took over Barton’s face, oh he loved it when he was right. So what it meant he had to flirt with a guy, this wouldn’t be the first and sure as hell wouldn’t be the last so he didn’t mind. “Well, I don’t mind if I do. Honey, could you get us some drinks?” Clint asked Nat before taking a seat next to their target. She just rolled her eyes before doing exactly that.

“Sorry about my wife, she isn’t all too thrilled about my sexuality. She’s just jealous you think I’m hotter than her that’s all,” Clint said with a smirk as he settled into his seat before glancing over at the other man. “That tie looks awfully tight, how about I loosen if hm?” Clint asked as he shuffled closer before pressing his palm against his chest while using the other to slowly loosen the tie. While what might seem like an innocent, flirtatious action he was feeling for the thumb drive. “Do you work out?” He asked with a smirk as his hand skimmed across his chest which earned a laugh out of the other man. _‘Only when I can but I’m glad you can tell, though nothing in comparison to you. Your shoulders are practically ripping through your shirt’_

Clint raised his eyebrow at the last comment but just played it off nonchalant way as he had just found the thumb drive in his pocket. He needed to get it out off his pocket and hand it off to Natasha so she could copy it. “That’s nice of you to say but there’s only one real way for you to find out is check it out personally,” He said with a smirk as he pulled back his hands, the thumb drive now clasped in his hand.

Just like that Natasha arrived on time with two fresh drinks. “Aha! Thank you, darling, how about you give us some space to talk?” He said as he took one of the drinks from her, passing the thumb drive over to her as he did so. ‘Sounds like a wonderful idea’ She grumbled before rolling her eyes and turning away from them now with the thumb drive in her hand. ‘You amaze me Barton’ She mumbled to herself. “Now that she’s gone, let’s get to the real talk’ Clint said with a wink. All he had to do was flirt with the man until she got back and then their work was done.

With the thumb drive now in her hand, Natasha had to find herself some privacy so she could get out the small tablet in her purse which would allow her to copy the contents of the thumb drive onto it. It was a simple task but tedious. She just hoped Clint’s flirting skills were up to par, well she knew they were because he’d been doing so the second they had arrived but flirting with a man was a little different. Though that being said he seemed to have no issues jumping into the role, which raised more questions than it did answers but those were thoughts for later on.

She found herself a booth which was covered by the shade and once sat down she didn’t waste a second plugging the hard drive into the tablet before starting the download. It would take at least a few minutes to fully download, she was a little worried for Clint though. Turning around she realised that she didn’t have to be worried about him because somehow he had their target wrapped around his finger already. He was pulling out all the moves, thigh touch, table lean - the man had done it all. Maybe she should be worried about their target instead of Clint because at this rate they might as well sleep with one another.

Shaking her head, she glanced back down to the tablet. 100% complete. Everything was done, they just had to replace the thumb drive and get the hell out of there. Standing up, she was just about to head back to Clint a large man stood blocking her just as she put away the tablet with the drive-in hand. ‘Whatcha got there lady?’ He asked but didn’t wait for an answer as he snatched it out of her hand before holding it up to the light in order to get a better look at it. Apparently, he knew exactly what it was because the next thing she knew he had summoned at least four other men to assist him. She took as meaning they were onto her so without hesitation she ran towards Clint. ‘Come on we gotta go’ She whispered as she pulled him off the chair.

Clint, on the other hand, was in the midst of a very heated flirting session when he felt Nat pull him away which could only mean one thing. Winking in the man’s direction he quickly scrambled to his feet. “Maybe one day we’ll meet again!” He said in an overly dramatic tone before breaking out into a sprint as he followed Nat. “Well I did my part was it really hard for you to do the same huh?”

‘It wasn’t my fault, the guy snatched the thumb drive from me so I had to run. But I still got the information so don’t whine about my methods’ She said running. Natasha had ditched the heels because there was no way she’d be able to run anywhere in those death traps. The good thing was that they had agents waiting around the corner just in case so all she had to do was give a signal and they’d be able to safely get the hell outta there. The only problem was that she didn’t know where was best to go.

Turning a tight corner, the two agents found themselves in a large room which would be fine if they were on the first floor but they were about two floors up and a fall onto concrete would be deadly. “Well, this was a great idea. We’re trapped,” Clint said, a small amount of panic present in his voice as he spun around to look at the only entrance where now six arm guards stood. ‘Just trust me alright, I got us covered,’ She said with a small smile before turning towards the guards. ‘Hello, boys. If I were you I’d cover your eyes,’ She said with a smirk.

And just on time, the windows behind Clint and Natasha suddenly smashed with two agents falling in both of them. With that, there were now four heavily armed SHIELD agents covering the door and two more came through the now smashed up window. Nat pointed towards where the lounge was to the other two while the heavily armed agents went ahead to tackle the guards that were threatening Natasha and Clint.

Snapping his head to the side, Clint stared at Nat with wide eyes. “What the hell? I thought it was just you and I? But no there was a whole task force to back us up?” Clint said, clearly shocked by the events that had just unfolded. Nat just chuckled as she placed her hands on her hips. ‘What? They didn’t trust you with the knowledge. It’s not like you have the perfect track record,’ She said with a snicker as she watched the agents cuff up the armed guards that had been chasing them. Huffing out a breath of air, Clint just shrugged as he watched whatever the other agents were doing. “So we’re done now? That was much easier than I anticipated”

Natasha nodded before reaching into her purse to produce the tablet as one of their fellow agents had backtracked in order to take it off of her. ‘You know it. We can head back to the hotel now and do whatever you want,’ She said with a wink before taking a step towards the door.

Barton let out a deep breath as he lifted his head, catching the gaze of another agent who was staring at him. “What?” He snapped to which the other agent grinned. _‘Nothing you just have a little something on your lips, collar and bowtie’_ He said referring to the lipstick. Glancing down at what he was referring to Clint just rolled his eyes before following Natasha out of the place. “So what? Can’t a man get lipstick on his tie?”


	6. You can't profit off my sex life!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clint and Nat make their way back from their mission and stop off to get some burgers. A relaxed evening is ahead of them but are they prepared to discuss the sorts of things that happened during the mission?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey there all, it's been a while since I've written one of these but just thought I stop by! I am seriously enjoying writing this though it's just now that I'm starting to get the hang of things so I'm sorry things have been a little slow to start with but I was getting a feel for the characters! This chapter is pretty much just for the hell of it, I had a bunch of these little scenarios in my head and realllly wanted to write them so I threw them in here. I hope you're enjoying it so far because I'm just getting started. If you have anything to say about the story or whatever please say so! I'd love you hear what you have to say! Anyway I'll shut up now but enjoy - J

With the two agents mission coming to an end, they were now free of all duties. Their part had been done, all that they really needed to do was collect the information which this man had spent so much time trying his hardest to hide from the rest of society, and now they were done. The rest of the damage control was set to be done with the additional S.H.I.E.L.D. agents that had been sent out, they would make all the arrests and assure the rest of the party guests that everything was alright despite the commotion that was happening all around them.

Upon leaving the top floor of the mansion, both Clint and Natasha simply made their way down to the ground floor where it was clear they knew something was up. The music had stopped playing and the large dancing crowd had dispersed out a fair amount. As the two walked past, concerned whispers could be heard as they tried to understand whatever was happening around them. It wasn’t every day these sort of things happened so it was understandable that they were curious to know what had happened.

“Man this is weird to see, not long ago all these people were judging each other based on the type of shoes they wore now they are chatting to one another like they are one of the same. Rich people man, I don’t get em,” Clint murmured towards Nat just as they slipped out of the front door. 

She chuckled as she followed the other agent through the door, holding her heels in one hand as there was no way she’d be able to walk in them after that little chase scene they had just ensued. ‘Well I don’t blame them, you’d do the same considering you are Mister Richie Rich,’ Nat said with a smug look.

Clint glanced behind him before pulling a face of disapproval. “Nuh-uh not any more. Your husband died the minute we left that building. Clint’s back in the building baby,” He said with a wide grin before making his way over to the cherry car that they had parked out front. “God it feels good to be back, I wasn’t rich for very long but god I hated it. You wouldn’t think being rich was a bad thing but it really is! Being rich ain’t all about the money, who’ve thought!” He exclaimed as he unlocked the car before clambering into the driver’s seat - purposefully allowing Natasha to open her own door. 

‘Well that’s a real shame, I was starting to like this different personality of yours. He’s not that much of an asshole’ Natasha said with a smirk as she followed him towards the car and climbed into it. 

Snapping his head around, Clint looked at her with an offended look slapped across his face. “Oh come on? Me? An asshole? You must have gotten me confused with another man because I am nothing but a gentleman. And for you to think otherwise is straight-up offensive,” He scoffed, reaching down he pushed the keys into the ignition and turned them. Clint wanted to get out of here as soon as he could, the less time he had to be around those rich dicks the better.

Now that the two of them were buckled in, it wasn’t long until Barton had them both on the road and they were speeding away from the party. After a couple of minutes of driving, Clint’s stomach grumbled. A reminder that he was yet to eat today. So he made an executive decision by making a couple of turns. “When was the last time you had a burger and fries huh? Probably never, you don’t seem the kinda girl for trash food,” He mused, keeping his eyes on the road.

‘Oh is that so? Let me tell you a bit of a secret then. One of my biggest guilty pleasures is fast food. Ever since arriving in America, I’ve been hooked. And it is so your fault. I’ve picked up so many bad habits from you,’ She teased with a smirk, all while leaning back into her seat. ‘But seriously, I could use a burger around now. I’m done with fancy shit,’ She mused.

Barton didn’t need to hear anything else, if she was on board with the idea then that was all he needed. Taking a glance around the surrounding area, he kept his eyes peeled for anywhere that would be able to supply them with a decent burger and fries - none of that McDonald’s shit.

A couple of minutes passed by and a Five Guys popped into view. It was a little overpriced but with these corporate credit cards in hand, Clint didn’t think that was a big deal so he was quick to pull into the nearest parking lot. “Do you want anything in particular? Don’t hold back either ‘cause I ain’t paying for it,” He said with a grin as he rooted around in his wallet for the corporate card he had been gifted before starting to get out of the car.

‘Burger, fries and a chocolate shake, please. Don’t hold back on the pickles either,’ Natasha requested before sinking back into her seat with a smug look.

Clint stepped out of the car and looked at her once more with a slight shrug. If that’s what you want, then that is what I shall get you. Even if it’s a weird pickle based request,” He grumbled before turning his back on her. “I’ll leave the car unlocked because I trust you to act like an adult! You better be on your best behaviour!” He yelled with a smirk before eventually disappearing inside the burger place to get their food.

Fifteen or so minutes passed until Clint eventually made an appearance back out of the Five Guys with brown paper bags and two cups in hand. The archer approached the car where Nat was avidly waiting for her food, possibly even more hungry than he was.

Arriving at the car, he shook the bags in front of her with a wide grin before walking along the length of the car and climbing into his side of it. Sitting down, he sorted out who’s food was which before handing her’s off. “There we are, one burger with pickles and fries. Your milkshake is here. God, I can’t believe you. Next thing I know your gonna tell me that you like your pineapple on pizza,” Clint grumbled before passing her the chocolate shake in his hand.

‘Of course, I like pineapple on pizza. Is that not something everyone likes?’ She questioned before opening her bag of food and began to tear into the burger like there was no tomorrow. It was only until he had mentioned food that Natasha had realised how famished she was. Considering she had such a petite form she often surprised herself and others with the quantity of food she consumed.

It took a couple of seconds for Clint to actually react to what she had just said but when he did it was overdramatic, to say the least. Whipping his head to the side, he glared at Natasha for a couple of seconds before finally speaking. “My god you disgust me. I don’t think we can be friends any more. Really Nat? Pineapple on pizza? What monster have you become,” Clint said as he screwed his face up before bashing his back against the seat in rebellion. 

Natasha just laughed at Clint’s reaction, eyeing him as she watched him slowly eat his food too. ‘Your one to complain. I don’t whine about all your imperfections. Like the way you chew with your mouth open, or how you snore,’ She said with the quirk of her eyebrow before reaching forward so she could take a sip of her milkshake. 

“Whagdyou mwean?! I dwo not chewy wif my mouth open!” Clint exclaimed with half a mouthful of food which didn’t exactly help his case in the slightest. Instead of saying anything else, the female agent just laughed at him before continuing to eat. Considering that she didn’t respond to him, Clint just had to give in and rather than trying to convince her that he wasn’t this disgusting creature that she had described him as. So the two of them just sat there in silence as they demolished the food in front of them which didn’t exactly take very long due to how hungry the two were.

Once the two had finished their food, their next cause of action was to go back to the hotel that they would be spending the rest of the night in. While it wasn’t exactly late, it wasn’t all that early either and considering that neither of them knew the city of Paris very well it was best for them to stay in the area that they did know to avoid getting lost. With that in mind, Clint was fairly quick to drive them both back to the hotel and before he knew it he was pulling up in the garage of the hotel.

Neither of the agents said anything as they got out of the car and re-checked into the hotels, the food that they had just consumed had seemingly put them both into something of a food coma. They kept their silence up until they arrived at their shared room. Nat was the first to speak.

‘Join me for a drink on the balcony?’ She asked Clint as she walked over to where the mini-fridge was and lifted up what looked like a very expensive bottle of scotch. Clint smiled as he walked over toward her but shook his head. “Uh I’m alright but I’ll still come out with you,” He said before heading out.

Alcohol wasn’t exactly his best friend and considering he’d already had a swig today he’d rather not touch it again today. It was alright in moderation but his history with the substance was not a good one and his history of alcoholism wasn’t exactly on his agenda today. That was a conversation for another day, or possibly never if it was possible. Natasha shrugged her shoulds at his comment before pouring herself out a small amount in a glass as she went to follow Clint as he went out toward the balcony.  
The view that they got from the balcony was magnificent. It outlook one of the busiest areas of the city and at this time of night, it was completely lit up by cars and streetlights. But that wasn’t even the best bit as the view from the balcony was right in line with the Effiel tower, a landmark that neither agent had experienced with their own eyes before.

“Never thought I’d say this but wow, the city really is beautiful,” Clint said as he walked over to the railing of the balcony and pressed his elbows against it as he leant over it, glaring down at the busy streets below them. Nat was quick to step up to his side, copying his body language as she too leant against the railing with a smile before nodding in agreeance with what he was saying but said nothing.

Clint reached up and tugged on his bowtie before undoing a few of his top buttons. It felt like he was being strangled and couldn’t wait to get that death trap off of his neck as soon as he could. He tossed it to the side before reaching into suit jacket and revealing a carton of cigarettes and a lighter. Bringing the cig up to his mouth, he carefully placed it in between his lips as he lit the end all while taking a quick puff of it. He found that smoking was a better way to relieve stress than alcohol because for him at least he didn’t have the same abusive relationship with them as he did booze.

Natasha just stood back for a second and watched as Clint got out a cigarette as this was something she had never seen him do before. ‘I didn’t take you for much of a smoker,’ She mused as her eyes flickered between the cigarette and his eyes considering that she wasn’t used to this behaviour.

“Yeah well, it’s sort of a new thing. Nicotine helps calm the nerves so I smoke one every now and again,” He mumbled as he pulled it away from his lips before blowing out a lungful of smoke. “Because today has been a stressful day,” Clint said laughing as he drew another breath of smoke. “I mean come on, kiss a man for the second time and your gonna freak him out juuuuuust a little bit,” He teased as he threw a sideways glance over to Nat.

Rolling her eyes slightly, she shook her head in an attempt to hide the growing blush that was threatening her cheeks. She wasn’t expecting to have to talk about their kiss, like ever because it had been something she had done professionally … and that was all. Or at least that was what she was trying to convince herself of. ‘Well, you know what freaks out a woman? When a seemingly straight man suddenly drops everything to flirt with a gay man. I mean seriously Clint you were scarily good at that. To the extent at which I was under the impression you were going to let him fuck you,’ She teased but she was really only half-joking.

Clint laughed harshly at her comment as he put more pressure on his elbows which allowed him to lean further over the balcony. “Well it’s funny you say that because I’m glad you picked up on my skills and it’s really not that hard. Men are very easy to flirt with, just play into what they want to hear and boom. Smitten,” He said with a shrug, placing the smoke between his lips. “And just to let you know he wouldn’t be fucking me, it’d be the other way round. I don’t bottom sweetie,” Clint said with a wink, not exactly sure why he had just said that but it was true nonetheless. His bisexuality wasn’t something he was open about but he knew Tasha wouldn’t care.

The red blush growing on Natashas cheeks only got worse when he went onto explain how and why he did what he did back then. There was just something about the way he said it so confidently made her question a lot of things. Lifting her head up, she raised an eyebrow as confidence was quick to replace any remaining embarrassment that had embedded itself in her. ‘Is that so? Well, that’s good to know,’ She said in a very nonchalant way. 

Lifting her hand up, she carefully reached up and plucked the cigarette from his lips before placing it between her own and took a long drag all while remaining eye contact with the man. Eventually, a couple of seconds passed and she removed the cigarette from her lips and carefully spun it around in her hand so she could push it back between his lips with a smirk. She knew **exactly** what she was doing.

There was very little Clint could do while Natasha did, whatever the hell she was doing, other than just staring down at her in awe. Never before had he experienced something so innately sexual but innocent at the same time and it left him wondering what she was trying to do to him. Because whatever it was clearly was working. Moments like these reminded him of the overarching unsolved sexual tension that still cloaked the two of them but neither of them was willing to discuss it even after all these years. 

Swallowing thickly, Barton reached up to take one last drag of the cigarette before he put it out on the side of the balcony railing. He still had said nothing because she had left him utterly lost for words. So he was more than happy for when she eventually broke the silence.

‘I think I’m gonna head to bed. Nice work today though, I’ll see you in the morning,’ Natasha said with a smile as she squeezed his upper arm before disappearing back into their bedroom in order to get ready to go to bed which left Clint alone to his thoughts.

Drawing in a deep breath, he spun around so he could clasp the railing with either hand as he squeezed his eyes shut. “God that woman drives me insane. Like how am I meant to just act like that didn’t happen?!” He grumbled to himself trying to justify any reasons for the way in which she acted but he simply couldn’t think of anything that made sense to him.

He gave her a couple of minutes to get ready for bed before he went back inside, he didn’t want any awkward moments if she happened to still be changing. God they had already had far too many of those for his liking so he wasn’t planning on adding another any time soon.

When Clint walked back into their shared bedroom, he glanced over to her bed which was now occupied. She had her back turned away from him but he could still tell that she wasn’t asleep yet, she wasn’t exactly the type to fall asleep just like that. Clint found himself staring so quickly turned around and began to get undressed himself, it probably wasn’t the smartest idea to sleep in a suit. Not only would it be uncomfortable as hell but also it would more than likely ruin it.  
It took him a couple of minutes but it wasn’t long until Clint was left in his boxers and undershirt. Walking over to a chair, he slung the suit over the back of it before heading over to his bed. He slid in between the sheets before finally just laying back and allowed his body to relax. Closing his eyes he tried to just allow his mind to go blank and let unconsciousness take him.

Hours passed and neither agent was asleep. Or at least that was what the other assume was the case. Sleep was a funny thing when it came to it, while yes it was nice to just close your eyes and rest up, for people that had seen and done horrific things it was awful. More often than not the agent’s sleep would be plagued by nightmares so real that one would wake up screaming because what they had seen seemed so realistic. That was one of the biggest downfalls of the job, the trauma and baggage that never left you. At least Nat and Clint had each other, they understood and sympathised with the other even if they hadn’t gone through the exact same thing they had a mutual sense of respect and understanding for one another. And that was something that they would never take for granted.

The creaking of the bed next to him got Barton’s attention because so far neither one had made a peep since going to bed. Clint just his eyes as he heard footsteps approaching, wanting to at least make it seem like he was asleep. The footsteps stopped at the other side of his bed, the one where he wasn’t sleeping on before he suddenly felt a shift in weight as the other side of the bed dipped as Nat carefully climbed into his bed. 

Back at the base, this was something she did every once in a while. Natasha would swing by Clint’s room at like three am and crawl into bed with him because she just didn’t want to be alone. Falling asleep by herself was a reminder to her time in the Red Room as for days at a time she would be left alone, in complete isolation as a part of her “training”. So if she could avoid the isolation and nightmares she would. And it wasn’t like Clint minded because at this point it had happened so many times it barely even phased him.

Turning around on his side, Clint carefully watched as she made herself comfortable in his bed before eventually turning her back on him. While this wasn’t the first time it had happened, it still wasn’t something she was open to talking about and didn’t plan on it any time soon.

Barton couldn’t help but smile slightly as he watched her red locks brush over her shoulder. Even facing away from him she still managed to look beautiful to him. Usually, he just let her do her own thing and find whatever made her comfortable enough to fall asleep but this time he wanted to assure her with his presence in a different way.

Shuffling over towards her, he slowly extended his arms out toward her so he could gently wrap it around her waist. This could go one of two ways and he just prayed that for once things could go his way. And much to his surprise, it did. 

Rather than recoiling at his touch, at first, Natasha just froze up completely as she tried to process what was happening but she was far too tired to properly think about what was happening and all she really wanted was to feel safe, so was there really any harm in allowing this man she trusted her life with to hold her for one night? Sure it was a sign of weakness and vulnerability but everything about their relationship already screamed that. Plus when morning came she just would sneak away and they’d never have to speak about it again.

So with that in mind, she just gave in. His warm touch with the mixture of her exhaustion meant that she just wanted to feel safe again. Leaning back, she pressed her back against Clint’s chest as she reached over to her waist to carefully hold his hand before curling up with it. This was it. This was what home felt like. 

* * *

The morning came around faster than either agent would have liked. The entire night the two had spent it entangled in the arms of the other and while they wouldn’t admit it to one another it was the only time that they both felt at ease. 

Natasha was the first to wake up and when she did she was confused. It wasn’t every day she woke up with a man’s arm slung over her waist but at the same time, it wasn’t exactly a foreign feeling. Groaning ever so slightly, she wiggled out of Clint’s grip as she swung her legs over the side of the bed. Lifting her arms up, she stretched before yawning. For once she felt somewhat refreshed because she managed to get more than three hours of consecutive sleep which was usually reserved for complete exhaustion.

Turning around, she glanced over her shoulder to catch a glimpse of the still sleeping Clint. When he was asleep he was kind of cute, especially considering that he couldn’t talk while he was fast asleep. Smiling down at him, she leant over the sleeping man and pressed a gentle kiss against his cheek before carefully brushing a hand through his golden hair. ‘Thank you Clinty,’ She whispered, not wanting to wake the archer.

With that, she got up from the bed and made her way into the bathroom. With any luck by the time Clint woke up, she would already be in the shower so he wouldn’t have time to confront her with whatever it was that happened last night. Moving into the bathroom she locked the door before jumping right in the shower, it wouldn’t be long until one of the agents stopped by in order to escort them to the jet.

The sound of the shower alerted Clint to the extent that he rose from his slumber ever so slightly. Letting out a soft groan, he forced his eyes shut to block out the sunlight that was coming through the windows. Last night he had been so distracted he had completely forgotten to shut the blinds. Rolling over slightly, he stretched his arm over to the other side of the bed and felt for the body that was there only moments ago. Frowning, he opened his eyes and snapped his head over to side only to realise that Nat was gone and from the sounds of the shower he got the idea of where she had gone.

Huffing out a breath of air, he fell back onto the mattress as he rubbed his face trying to think about what happened last night which resulted in a smile to occupy the lower half of his face. He knew Nat wouldn’t want to talk about it but that was a memory he was going to hold dear to his heart.

His moment of thoughts to himself was rudely interrupted by the sound of the door opening which was a little concerning considering that only he and Nat had keys to the door. Scrambling upwards, Clint reached beneath his pillow to reveal a 9mm as he cocked the gun and aimed it at the door as it swung open only to reveal a suited up Phil Coulson.

Clint let out an exasperated sigh as he finally realised who it was before lowering the come. “What the hell man? Does it hurt to knock?” He exclaimed as he tossed the pistol aside before running his fingers through his hair. _‘Well it is ten am, I expected you to be awake but I’ll keep that in mind next time’_ Phil said with a slight smile as he walked into the hotel room before shutting the door behind him.

 _‘I got the mission report back, seems like my dynamic duo is getting things done once again. Nicely done Barton,’_ Coulson said with a smile as he walked over to the table and lean up against it. “I’m glad you approve, though it wouldn’t have hurt to tell me it was a sting operation,” He grumbled as he got out of bed and searched around for a pair of jeans.

 _‘Right because last time we did that everything went swimmingly didn’t it?’_ Coulson said with a grin as his eyes flickered around the room. “Woah c’mon man it wasn’t my fault I tripped that guy up! He just happened to walk across my extended foot that’s all,” He grumbled as he did up his zipper.

Phil grinned as he shook his head, pushing himself up from the table as he looked around once again. _‘Where’s Romanoff? The shower I assume?’_ He questioned to which Clint nodded. His eyes flickered between the two beds and noted how only one really looked like it had been slept in. Raising his eyebrow, Coulson crossed his arms over his chest with a slight smirk. _‘So you two finally slept together? Good on you, I can finally get that 100 bucks for the bet,’_ Phil said with a laugh.

The look on Clint’s face was priceless as his head span around in a mixture of confusion and worry. “W-What? No no, we didn’t sleep together! I mean even if we did that’s like against company policy or some shit. No, we didn’t sleep together. And a bet?! What bet?! “ Clint said in a rushed tone, his cheeks lighting up as he did so. _‘Don’t worry don’t worry I’m not going to tell anyone, I mean I’m your biggest supporter so I won’t go snitching. Oh and practically the entire field agency has a massive bet of when you two are gonna sleep together,’_ Phil said as he shrugged his shoulders, getting far more enjoyment out of this than he should be.

Furrowing his eyebrows Clint glared at Phil trying to figure out a way to explain what the hell he was seeing with the whole bed situation. “I mean yes technically we slept together in like the same bed but we didn’t sleep together as in fuck-” Barton explained trying to clear the slate but it couldn’t have been any worse timing as Natasha entered the room just to hear the last sentence which caused Phil to break out into laugher.

Turning around, Clint looked at Nat with wide eyes before wincing. ‘So, what are you talking about boys?’ She asked with a slight smirk before walking over to the other side of the room in order to start packing her things away. “N-nothing Coulson was just uh dropping by. Pretty sure he’s gonna leave soon. Isn’t he?” Clint said as he turned back towards the other man with a nod.

 _‘Actually no, I’m here to escort you two back to the plane. All those people in that mansion saw your faces last night so your gonna need a little extra protection. So, of course, they sent me, the guy who is technically meant to be dead,’_ He said as he walked towards the door.

“Oh even better. More time to talk, how lovely. I’ll be one second, just gotta put all my shit in a bag and we are good to go,” Clint mumbled as he manoeuvred across the room to finish packing, which Natasha had already done so now she was just sat on the edge of the bed patiently waiting for Clint to hurry up.

A minute or so later and they were set to go. Both agents had their bags swung over their shoulders and were on their way to leave the hotel and France behind. Grabbing Clint by the arm, Phil held him back for a couple of seconds with a smile on his face. _‘Seems like bets still on then, don’t let me down’_ The older agent said with a slight wink before making his way out of the hotel room. 

Clint sighed softly, he couldn’t wait to go back to something much more mundane where he wouldn’t be pushed up against Natasha every other moment. “Come on, you’ve got to be kidding me. You can’t profit off of my sex life!”


	7. We're just friends that kiss sometimes!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clint and Natasha are back at the headquarters tackling day to day tasks though things turn out interesting...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyo! God it's nearly been a month since updating and I feel awful. Though that being said I have no idea if anyone is reading at this point but if you are, I seriously appreciate it and hope your enjoying! This chapter was a bit of fun, hinting at things that may or may not happen in the near future and I really just wanted to use FitzSimmons as a parallel to Clint and Nat 'cause they are both clearly two pairs of best friends in love! I seriously loved writing this and hope you guys enjoy!

A couple of days since the Paris mission had passed and the two agents were already back doing their normal day job duties. While they were both technically secret agents, it wasn’t all sneaking around the world on these top-secret missions. There were other much more mundane tasks that they had to complete from day to day, especially if they were just sticking around the base. Even the very best agents still had to do their part which for Clint was quite sad considering this really wasn’t the sort of thing he signed up for.

If he wanted a day job at an office he could do exactly that but he would much rather spend his time getting shot at than being stuck behind a desk for what would likely be the rest of his life. To be perfectly honest neither of the two agents would be suited for what some would class as a ‘normal life’, they saw the white picket fence sorta thing to be boring and lacking action. 

Though deep down it was something that both Clint and Nat craved but was something that they would never admit out loud because normality just was out of the question for people like them. Or at least that was what they thought, who knew what the future held for the two.

Today wasn’t exactly a very interesting day but for the first time in a while, both Clint and Natasha were in charge of combat training some of the new recruits that were fresh out of the academy. Whoever thought putting the two of them together in charge of far younger agents, clearly didn’t know the pair all too well so to say that it was going to be an interesting situation was a bit of an understatement.

Natasha was the first to arrive at the training area which wasn’t much of a surprise considering Clint had issues when it came to being on time. Either he was right on time or late by an upsetting amount.

Glancing around the empty gymnasium she pouted every so slightly, thinking about how they were going to cram in at least twenty full-sized agents into such a small place but they were going to have to make do as the main one was currently under ‘renovations’ which was practically just an excuse to keep them out while they had inspectors lurking around the place.

It was starting to make sense why both she and Clint had been shoved into the same task, they wanted him as far away from the inspector as possible considering the last time they were here Clint managed to point out nearly every flaw of their facility in one conversation which did no good for their reputation. So having Nat glued to his side she would be able to shut him up if it came to it.

Just as she started to set up, the door to the Gymnasium swung open which was followed by the distant sound of footsteps. ‘If you are here early you gotta wait outside, I’m still setting up,’ She mumbled as she was sorting through some papers before a familiar voice filled the room.

“I mean if you wanna do all the work I’ll be more than happy to wait outside,” The voice said as the footsteps stopped a little way behind her. A smirk perked up the corner of her lips before she turned around and crossed her arms over her chest only to see Clint stood before her.

Narrowing her eyes ever so slightly, Nat scoffed at him before she nodded towards the mats. ‘Haha very funny. You can start by moving these mats onto the floor. I didn’t think you had the capacity of being early, do you have a fever or something?” She teased with a smirk.

Scoffing at her remark, Clint tossed his bag to the side before starting to grab mats and setting them out on the ground. “Oh no, I’m fully aware I’m early, thought I might try something new. Y’know the whole new year me sorta shtick but instead of it being a new year its a new week. And I gotta say it’s not the greatest, I had to wake up a whole thirty minutes earlier today,” He grumbled as he walked back and forth slamming mats down onto the ground as he did so.

Laughter filled the room as what he had said was starting to resonate with Natasha. It always seemed that he had to make everything at least ten times more dramatic than it ever needed to be. 

‘Seriously?! Thirty minutes? I honestly don’t know how your still alive, such a long period of time that you had to sacrifice to I don’t know do your job?’ She said with a grin as she waited for him to finish setting up.

Clint snapped his head around in order to glare in Nat’s direction before huffing out a breath of air. “I’m sorry not all of us are the perfect employee that everyone wants us to be, some of us have fucked up sleep schedules meaning those thirty minutes mean a lot. To be honest, you should be thanking me for being here,” He said with a sort of smile as he was only being half-serious. 

The redhead just rolled her eyes at him as she quirked up an eyebrow, clearly not impressed with his statement. ‘Whatever, I just hope you’re ready to get your ass beat in front of a bunch of kids. You’re gonna be the practice dummy’ Nat said with a grin but Clint couldn’t even reply as the door swung open as the trainees began to fill the room.

Glaring at her, he just huffed out a breath of air as he crossed his arms over his chest. Turning his body around to the side, Clint kept quiet as the recruits slowly filled the room. Some of the faces were familiar, this wasn’t their first combat training session that was for sure. 

Though it seemed that Clint wasn’t the only one who seemed to recognise people because before the class even started there were whispers and points in the direction of the two agents who were stood at the front of the gym.

Sharing an odd glance between one another, Clint took a step towards her so he could utter something to her without being overheard by anyone else. “Is it just me or are they talking about us?” He questioned in a hushed tone as his eyes swept over many recruits that stood before them. The picture before them reminded him of something he would see in a middle school, not a secret service agency.

Natasha held back a laugh as she nodded at Clint’s statement. She couldn’t help but find amusement in what was happening right now, though she still wasn’t exactly sure what they were talking about or pointing at. ‘Mm I mean they’re probably talking about your bed hair, you could have at least put some effort in,’ She teased with a smirk before playfully nudging him.

‘Alright, alright everyone settle down. I know it’s exciting to point out peoples laziness but it’s also sometimes rude an-’ Natasha began to speak before she was interrupted by one of the recruits who were stood in the front.

 _‘Sorry but we weren’t talking about his lack of self-worth if that’s what you meant,’_ She said before pointing at Clint which made him pull a face and Nat was clearly trying to hold back laughter. _‘We were just saying that we know you guys. You’re like the Avengers, right?’_ The recruit said.

Pouting ever so slightly Clint and Nat shared a knowing glance between one another before Clint took a step forward. “Oh, you know it that’s us. Black Widow and Hawkeye at your serve. Me being the beautiful Black Widow of course,” He said with a grin as he placed either one of his hands on his hips which only earned him a rough shove.

‘Very funny Clint but yeah still I don’t see the reason to point and whisper? I thought it was common knowledge?’ Nat questioned with the tilt of her head as she genuinely wanted to know whatever it was that they were talking about.

A giggle escaped the girl’s mouth, who now looking at her couldn’t be much older than eighteen before she regained her posture and answered Natasha’s question. _‘I mean we were just saying that we didn’t realise you guys were dating, isn’t that like not allowed or something?’_ The recruit questioned.

Clint nearly choked on his own spit when he heard what she said and his eyes instantly widened before he glanced over at Nat who’s cheeks were now very red. 

Silence fell amongst the room as neither Nat nor Clint was sure what to say after such information had just been revealed despite the fact it wasn’t true. What was more interesting was how on Earth they had managed to get to such a conclusion.

Eventually, Clint was the one to address these so-called accusations. “I mean uhm we’re not dating. Like at all I’m not sure why you’d say such a thing but yeah that’s not us. And yeah you’re not supposed to be romantically involved with other agents but like there’s not much they can do if you are,” He said as he shrugged his shoulders before stuffing his hands into his pockets.

Natasha very awkwardly stepped over towards Clint and gently clasped his shoulder as she pulled him back gently. ‘Well now that’s out of the way I guess we should get started with the class,’ She said before going onto explain whatever it was they would be doing for today. 

Minutes passed by and all the recruits had been briefed on what this session would require of them and they were just now breaking off into pairs so they could practice the upcoming combat moves.

‘Right so to start off with we will just be going through some basic self-defence moves, these sort of moves are especially helpful if your opponent is much taller and larger than yourself. Sort of like Clint here,’ She said with a smirk before glancing over at Clint who was clearly offended by the statement but couldn’t say much as they were already moving onto the physical part of the session.

With everyone now in pairs, the session could begin. They started off with simple moves, like aiming for the weakest points on your opponents and how to escape their grip. 

It was all going well up until the point where Natasha had to show how to use someone’s weight against them which required the use of her partner who up until now had been sat on his ass scrolling through his phone.

‘Alright Barton get up off your ass, I’m gonna need a test dummy for this. Hope you stretched,’ She said with a wink as she gestured for him to stand next to him, which he did fairly quickly. 

Grabbing either side of his shoulder, Natasha moved his stance so he was a tad closer to her and that he was in arms reach. ‘Alright, so I’m gonna need you to place your hands here and here, making sure you are gripping tight alright?’ She instructed Clint as she grabbed his wrists and placed one on her shoulder and the other on her waist.

Nodding, Clint did as he was told and glanced around the room seeing the pairs that were dotted around the room slowly began to do the same thing until all they were waiting for were their next instructions.

‘Everyone that’s pretending to be the attacker I want you to try and push the other person over but as soon as they do this, the other person needs to slide their leg behind their ankle and use the other person’s weight against them so they’ll topple over. For example,’ She said before nodding at Clint which indicated that it was his turn to try and push her over. 

Which he did but very unsuccessfully because as soon as he applied any sort of pressure, Natasha moved in the blink of an eye and the next thing he knew he was falling back up until the point where his back slammed into matt that was beneath their feet. 

Though Nat didn’t just stop there, no once he was on the ground her hands instantly went to wrap around his wrists so she could pin him down before moving to literally straddled his hips which he guessed stopped him from kicking her but he couldn’t help but let his mind go to other places as he stared up at her. 

Once Clint was on the floor Natasha wasn’t really thinking about what she was doing but instead just letting her muscle memory kick in though it seemed that she had tapped into the wrong sort of memory as she now realised what she had done. Looking down at him, she felt her cheeks tint red ever so slights as they made eye contact. This was inappropriate on so many levels but still, she found herself doing absolutely nothing to remove herself from the situation.

It was only when an awkward cough brought her back into the world of reality which caused for Natasha to quickly let go of Clint and scramble up off of him, noticing how pretty much the entire gym had their eyes on the two. She was slowly understanding why they thought the two were in a romantic relationship, especially considering that those sort of things just happened on the daily. 

Clearing her throat, Natasha helped Clint get back onto his before addressing the rest of the room. ‘So yeah that’s how you stop a bigger person from overpowering you. I’d call that a day, for now, we got some inspectors going around so it’ll be best to cut things short,’ Nat said quickly before turning around trying to make herself look busy.

The room slowly began to break up but it was still quite busy as whispers were being shared between the recruits. Clint, still being at the front of the gym, managed to hear little snippets here and there which made it very hard for him to keep a straight face.

_‘Did you see that?’ ‘Yeah and to say they’re not dating like c’mon….’ ‘Do you think they have a ship name? Uhh, what about Natlint? Clintasha? ClintNat?’_

Snickering at the comments, Clint shook his head before crossing his arms over his chest waiting for everyone to leave. “Well, you could call that interesting? I’m starting to see why everyone thinks we’re together. Did you catch some of those names? I’m tossing up between Clintasha and ClintNat,” Clint said with a grin as he turned around to look at Nat which just earned him a glare.

‘Yeah sure I can totally see it and why is your name first? Because you’re a man? How incredibly sexist and to think I thought you were above that Barton,’ She said with a smirk as she collected her belongings. 

“Mm, whatever I am not a sexist, as the opposite of sexist. I’m a feminist! That’s the word right?” He asked which called Nat to laugh before nodding. ‘That’s it. Anyway, we gotta get moving with our day, I think we are needed in the lab. There’s some data we need to be decoded from our Paris mission so we gotta run it by FitzSimmons,’ She said.

The mention of the nerd pair brought a smile to his face as he raised an eyebrow. “FitzSimmons huh? They around today then? Haven’t seen them in a couple of months. Have those two gotten together yet? I mean c’mon could it be any more obvious that they are in love,” Clint scoffed, not realising how ironic his statement was in the slightest.

Natasha chuckled as she gestured for him to follow her as she made her way out of the gymnasium. ‘Yeah they’re kicking around for a little while in the labs to help with some tasks and to answer your other question, not to my knowledge but I’ll be honest even if they were I doubt we’d be able to tell. They already act like an old married couple so what would the difference be?’ She asked with a grin before walking with him to the labs.

The walk was very short and the next thing they knew the two of them were stood in the doors of FitzSimmons lab but neither of them had been noticed as they were in the midst of a seemingly heated argument.

 _‘I’m not saying that you’re not smart Jemma, I’m just saying if you’re not going to triple check your math equations then what’s the point?!’_ Fitz exclaimed as he was occupied scribbling math denotations over a whiteboard while Jemma was leaning against the table behind him scoffing.

 _‘That’s easy for you to say, Fitz, I don’t see you double-checking let alone triple-checking any of your equations so to call me out on a tiny mistake is very bold of you to say! And the only reason why I made that mistake, to begin with, because you were distracting me with your monkey talk. How many times do I have to tell you that a monkey helper is just impractical!’_ Jemma insisted as she shook her head at the man.

 _‘And do you know why I don’t need to double-check my calculations? Because they are always right! But don’t get my started on the money thing beca-’_ Fitz began to speak before Natasha gently coughed letting them know that they were there.

FitzSimmons both turned around and looked at the two agents before Clint waved at them. “Hey guys, sorry we didn’t mean to interrupt your argument? But we got some data that needs to be decoded,” He said as Natasha lifted up the thumb drive.

It was clear that the two weren’t expecting guests as they shared a knowing look before Fitz quickly nodded and stepped forward to take the thumb drive off of Nat. _‘Oh I got it. And we weren’t arguing… Just having an intellectual conversation’_ Fitz said as he walked over to a nearby computer and plugged in the thumb drive.

“Intellectual conversations about monkey servants?” Clint asked which caused Nat to giggle quietly.

Fitz looked up from his screen while Jemma quietly laughed in the back before pulling a very serious face. _‘No, they aren’t servants but rather helpers. And yes it’s very intellectual, isn’t that right Jemma?’_ Fitz said as he looked over at Jemma who just raised her eyebrows but quickly shook her head.

 _‘I mean … No comment?’_ Jemma said with a slight shrug before turning to both agents. _‘Anyway it’s nice to see you two, it feels like forever since we’ve seen you. Isn’t that right Fitz?’_ Jemma said to which Fitz grumbled something before getting back to the task at hand.

Chuckling, Clint stuffed his hands into his pockets as he rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet. “Yeah it’s been a hot sec, we’ve been travelling the world and all that jazz. Though I suppose you guys have been doing that too huh? But I bet you guys didn’t get to be pretend married twice huh?” Clint said with a grin before Nat playfully shoved him.

‘Yeah only pretend though Clint won’t admit that he wished it were real’ Nat teased with a glint in her eye which caused him to instantly get all defensive.

“What?! I do not wish that if anything the roles are reversed. Afterall you’re the one who’s always flirting with me so……” Clint retorted with a smug look which just caused Natasha just to roll her eyes dramatically at him. 

FitzSimmons instantly kept their mouths shut as they stood back and watched the ‘drama’ unfold before their eyes.

‘Oh yeah, you’re totally right. It’s me doing all the flirting my bad,’ Nat laughed before glancing over to FitzSimmons who quickly looked away and got back to work.

Clint cleared his throat, clearly not happy with what she was saying as he firmly placed his hands on his hips and took a stance. “I’m sorry you were the one who kissed me, not once, but twice! Yeah, they were mission-related sure you could say that but you initiated it!” Clint exclaimed, causing FitzSimmons to audibly choke.

Nat quirked up an eyebrow as she copied Clint’s body language by placing her hands on her hips before speaking up. ‘Well that might have been the case but you can’t say you didn’t enjoy it because practically everything about your reaction said otherwise,’ Natasha said with a smirk as she cocked her head to the side in an attempt to work a reaction out of them.

The two scientists were just hunched over the computer, peeking over the top of it in awe not sure what was happening. They had finished decoding minutes ago but they were now too invested in what was happening. _‘I really can’t tell if they are gonna fight or make out,’_ Fitz whispered which was apparently loud enough to catch their attention.

Fitz awkwardly stood there before clearing his throat and held up the thumb drive. _‘Um sorry but I’ve decided those files you wanted,’_ He said as he stepped forward and handed Nat the drive.

“Oh right, thanks. Yeah, we should probably be off and um let you guys work on science right?” Clint said as he looked at Nat, wanting to escape the previous conversation as quickly as he could so he didn’t have to answer her very awkward questions.

‘Mm alright, we gotta go see whats on this bad boy anyway. We’ll catch you later FitzSimmons,’ She said before heading out with Clint closely behind her.

FitzSimmons shared a glance with one another as the agents left the room. _‘Are those two together yet? I mean they are obviously in love right?’_ Fitz asked as he looked over at Jemma with a grin to which she nodded. _‘I don’t think so but you have a point. Those two fight like they’re married,’_ Jemma said with a smile, not noticing the irony and sudden parallel between the two couples she had unknowingly made.

Now that they had the decoded data, all that was left to do was to actually take a look at the sort of things that they risked their lives for. 

Though it seemed that today they were just going to bump into practically everyone they knew because just as the two agents turned the corner and there was Steve giving Peggy a tour, who only recently had returned to the land of the living.

According to Steve after he had gone in the ice Peggy had continued to work with Howard Stark and the SSR before forming what now was the official S.H.I.E.L.D. , though after the creation she offered herself up to try and further science by seeing if it was possible for the human body to survive once frozen and then reanimated. Clearly, it worked because here she was walking around looking not a day older than she had gone under the ice.

The only problem with her being around these days was that she and Clint didn’t exactly get along. When she first ‘came back to life’ a year or two ago, Steve introduced her to all the Avengers as they had started dating now that she was around. 

And things were okay at first but then Clint started making some jokes that Peggy wasn’t a fan of and one day he pushed her buttons the wrong way and just snapped. He left the tower with a broken nose and hit to his ego, Nat left with him with tears in her eyes due to how hard she was laughing. So to see Peggy once again was going to be interesting, to say the least. 

Steve was the first to see the two agents and instantly waved them over with a smile. _‘Hey, guys! Haven’t seen you guys in a while. You remember Peggy right? I was giving her a tour of the place, seems like she’s up to reinstate,’_ Steve said with a soft smile before Peggy smiled awkwardly and nodded.

“Of course I remember, almost impossible to forget!” Clint exclaimed which earned him a jab in the side from Nat. “What? How could I forget Steve’s wonderful girlf-Fiance!” Clint said, quickly correcting his mistake. 

Peggy narrowed her eyes in his direction ever so slightly before her facial expression softened. _‘Ah yes, Mr Barton. It’s nice to see you again, how’s that nose of yours?’_ She questioned with an innocent sort of tone before Steve awkwardly laughed.

 _‘So funny … As usual. But yeah I’m glad we bumped into you guys because we wanted to invite you to the wedding. In-person rather than invites. It’s next week, I know a little soon but we don’t want to wait’_ Steve said with a smile as he wrapped an arm around Peggy’s shoulders and gave her a light squeeze.

The two agents looked at each other before back at Steve and Peggy with a smile. ‘Really? Well that’s lovely! We’ll be happy to come but you want both us to go? Clint included?’ Natasha asked with a small grin.

“I would argue but she has a point. I was under the impression that you didn’t like me Peggy?” Clint questioned with the quirk of his eyebrow.

Peggy huffed out a small breath of air before shaking her head. _‘While we might not get along on some things, your not a bad man. And if you promise to be on your best behaviour I don’t see why not. Plus Ms. Romanoff will be there so I’m not worried, she’ll have you on a leash I’m sure,’_ Peggy said with a smile in Nat’s direction. 

Laughter left Nat’s mouth as she quickly nodded. ‘Oh don’t you worry, I’ll be on him like a hawk’ She said before playfully bumping his shoulder with her own.

“Haha very funny I’m not a kid. But if you want me to be there I’d love to come,” Clint said with a small but genuine smile.

 _‘Alright then, sounds like everythings settled. We probably won’t see you until then so make sure to dress up smart. You look busy so we’ll leave you be, until then!’_ Steve said smiling before moving onto the rest of his tour leaving the agents to deal with their own business. 

“Well that was uh interesting?” Clint said with a shrug as he looked over at Nat who just shook her head with a smile. “I guess that means we’re both going but I guess I should ask before I just assume. Do you wanna go with me to the wedding? Not like a date date just like wedding date y’know? Not in a weird way of course just ‘cause you’re going and I’m going so it would make sense for us to go together yeah?” The blonde babbled out as he had seemed to have lost nearly all sense of cognitive ability as words just streamed out of his mouth.

Natasha couldn’t help but laugh at Clint’s very jumbled request. ‘Asking me out huh? That’s a pretty bold move y’know. But of course I’ll come with you, who the hell else am I gonna take? Though you heard the Captain, dress up all nice and fancy. Do you still have that nice suit from Paris? If so you should wear it. You looked good in it.’ Nat said with a smile before patting his upper chest. 

Clint smiled as he tilted his head to the side ever so slightly. He had been expecting a joke or sarcasm so it was a little odd for her to be genuine about something but he accept her answer nonetheless. “Yeah? Well then it’s a date! Ish. Alright if I have to wear that death trap then you gotta wear the same dress you wore in Paris. It would only be fitting, plus you looked awesome in it,” Clint said smiling at her.

‘It’s sorted then. You and I for the wedding. I’ll meet you there? But besides that I gotta go run this data. You probably have paperwork to catch up on. Scrap that I know for a fact you haven’t finished your briefing for the Paris mission so go do that. I’ll be around,’ Natasha said with a smile before stepping up on her tippy toes and planting a soft kiss on his cheek. ‘See ya Clint,’ She said with a smile before turning her back and walking down the corridor.

Clint froze right where he was stood as he attempted to process whatever the hell just happened to him. She kissed his cheek? For what reason? He had no idea, like whatsoever. They weren’t even undercover so she did that out of her free will to Clint. Not some fake verison of himself but the real deal. 

The archer couldn’t stop the a wide grin from occupying his face as he did a little fist pump in the middle of the hall way. Though what he didn’t realise was that there were also some recruits from their earlier training session which had just witnessed the entire scenario between himself and Nat.

With wide eyes, he looked over to them before narrowing them as he death stared them. In a instant they broke out into giggled before shouting over to him. _‘Not together huh? Haha sure … Just fuck already!’_

The blondes cheeks instantly got red as he processed what they were saying. Parting his lips ever so slightly, he quickly shut them as he realised it wasn’t exactly appropriate to say that here. ‘Hey shut it! You don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about! We’re not together! We're just friends that kiss sometimes!’


	8. Man the good guy never get’s the girl

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha and Clint have been invited to Steve and Peggy's wedding, the two go together as one another date. Will the night end as they hope?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Right! So here is a wedding chapter because I was like why not. I thought it would be cute and here we are considering that we are getting closer and closer to them actually getting together I have to tease it as much as possible before it happens. I promise it will happen eventually but I'm just having far too much fun with this at the moment. I hope you guys enjoy and would love to hear what you have to say about it - J

The day of the wedding sped around the corner sooner than either agent could have planned for. You see real weddings wasn’t something that Clint nor Natasha often vacated too, their job made attending such things a bit of a hassle but considering that this wedding was between Captain America himself and the founder of S.H.I.E.L.D. exceptions were made. Especially considering that half of the guest list consisted of people that worked at the S.H.I.E.L.D. facility, the majority of those people had been granted the time off as long as there were enough people to cover shifts and such.

Clearly, everything was going to plan because here Clint stood in front of his full-length mirror attempting to put his suit on. He was somewhat surprised when he was granted permission to keep the suit considering it was branded with some fancy name that he didn’t even want to try and pronounce.

The attempt continued for a little while trying to tie his tie until he eventually just pulled up a youtube video and he managed to get a somewhat decent looking tie around his neck. All he could hope for was that the ceremony wasn’t going to be for too long because he did not like this feeling around his neck in the slightest. Sure he liked to be choked but this was the way forward.

Taking a glance around his apartment, he scoffed at the mess. It had gotten worse than usual, empty pizza boxes over the floor along with half-drunk mugs of coffee on every surface. “Once I’m back I’ll tidy up. Probably,” He mumbled to himself as he scratched the underside of his jaw before stepping out of his bedroom.

As soon as Barton stepped out of his bedroom he was practically lept on by Lucky, his golden retriever that he had rescued nearly a year ago. The dog lept up and pressed his paws against Clint’s abdomen which caused the archer to break out into a wide smile as he leant down in order to aggressively rub Lucky’s sides before leaning down and pressed a kiss against his fur. “Don’t worry buddy I won’t be gone for too long. Just a quick wedding and I’ll be back before you know it alright?” Clint said as he lifted Lucky’s face up so they could make eye contact.

Lucky just barked softly before licking Clint on the nose which caused the man to laugh. “I’ll miss you. Just don’t go wrecking the apartment like last time? I can’t afford any new couch cushions so behave … or else,” Clint scolded before standing back up and walking over to his bowl realising that he had forgotten to feed him once again.

“Shit. How the fuck do people do this with kids and shit? Man mine would so be dead by now…” He grumbled before walking over to one of his cupboards and pulled out a bag of dry dog food and poured out a hefty amount into Lucky’s bowl. “Eh, that should be enough right?” He asked him, knowing fully well that the dog couldn’t respond. 

The dog barked happily before trotting over to the bowl of food and began to eat as fast as he could. Clint laughed as he stretched out, the lower half of his suit was already covered in dog fur but he had no plans in removing it. That was far too much of a hassle and today was not a day he wanted to get worked up about. 

Clint crossed his arms over his chest as he just stood there, watching Lucky eat before speaking to him. “You enjoying that bud? You know what I’ll get you some wate-” He began but was interrupted as he heard a knock at the door.

That was odd, especially considering that no one really knew his address like at all. Mainly because he never had company over, which meant that this probably wasn’t a good thing.

Hushing Lucky, who had broken out into an erratic burst of barks, he rushed over to the side and grabbed his 9mm that was very casually just set out on the side. Loading the pistol, he quietly walked over to the door before grabbing the door handle and he held it for just a second.

It was moments like these where his annoyance for not having a peephole grew ever so slightly as he might have a rough idea of who or what he was going to be up against. But now wasn’t the time to have an argument with himself about doors, no he needed his head in the game. In a swift motion, he quickly yanked the door open before placing both hands on the gun as he lifted it above his waist in order to make sure that he was at least aiming at the targets chest. 

‘What the hell are you doing Barton?’ Natasha scoffed, slightly taken aback by the gun that was now only inches away from her face which heard a very deep sigh from the other agent as he slowly lowered the gun.

“Fucking hell Nat. I was just about to shoot your ass!” Clint exclaimed as he unloaded the gun and set it aside before rubbing his face. “You can’t just show up at people’s homes and not expect them to not shoot you! Rule number one is always announce your arrival,” Clint grumbled as he turned around just as Lucky launched himself at Nat.

‘I did announce my arrival dumbass. I knocked. I didn’t know you had a dog,’ Nat said with a small smile as Lucky attempted to lick her face while she stroked his golden coat. ‘Hiya. Aren’t you a sweet dog? What are you doing in a shithole like this?’ She teased, smirking up at Clint before switching her focus back to the dog. 

Barton rolled his eyes as he began to pat himself down, an attempt to get some of the dog furs off of him but it wasn’t working. “Yeah, I found him injured in the road a little while back. No collar, no chip nothin’. So once I got him fixed up I took him home. Looks like he likes you though,” Clint said as he crossed his arms over his chest while he leant against the door frame.

‘Well, that’s awfully adult of you. Didn’t think you could take care of yourself let alone a dog,’ Nat grinned as she stood up, carefully straightening out the dress she was wearing before gesturing for him to move out the way so she could come inside. ‘Are you gonna let me in or what?’ She asked with the raise of her eyebrows.

Clint laughed very sarcastically before patting Lucky’s side as he called him to come back inside before stepping out of the door frame so she could step inside. “You look nice, same dress from Paris, right? We did have a deal afterall,” Clint said with a smile as he took the opportunity to sweep his eyes across her body before quickly diverting them.

Natasha nodded, just about catching his eyes before he diverted them. ‘Yeah, same one. I see you also kept your side of the deal up. Though you can’t tell me that not only you can’t tie a bow tie but also a normal tie? Come here,’ She said with a soft chuckle waving him over so she could sort out the mess that was his tie.

A small smile formed at the corner of Clint’s lips as he nodded, stepping forward towards her so she could fix his tie. “I mean as a kid we never did anything that would require smart clothes and my dad never taught me because … well you know what my dad was like,” Clint spoke softly with his lips pursed. The subject of his father was a touchy one and Nat knew that as they had previously had many a conversation about both of their tragic pasts.

‘Well then, it’s a good job you have me then hm?’ She said with a smile before carefully reaching up as she turned up his collar and undid the mess of a tie he had previously done. Once the tie came loose, she reached up and flattened the top part of his shirt before slinging the tie around his next as she began to tie it - making sure that everything was perfect. 

A minute or so passed and tie was secured firmly around his neck. Nat pressed her hand against the tie, being careful to flatten it before patting him lightly on his chest with a smile. ‘Alright there we go, good as new,’ She said as she smiled up at him.

Looking down at himself, he ran his fingers over the tie before smiling ever so slightly. “Well thank you very much. I won’t look half bad now,” Clint said as he cleared his throat before taking a step back as they were considerably close to one another. 

“Do I wanna know how you know my address? I mean you’ve never been here before so just a little worried as to how you managed to find me,” Clint questioned before walking over to the dog bowl and picked it up and proceeded to fill it with fresh water for Lucky.

Laughter escaped the redhead’s lips as he wandered around the open planned apartment, taking note of all his possessions. ‘Clint it wasn’t hard. I just took a sneak peek at your file which lists all your personal information. Including someone’s middle name … Nice to meet you, Clinton FRANCIS Barton,” Nat said with a wicked grin as she turned around in order to gauge a reaction from the man.

The look on Clint’s face was priceless as he quickly spun on his heels, a look of disgust written all over his face. “Never say that name again! Fuck, there was a reason why I never told you! I am never gonna live this down,” He whined as he set down the bowl of water for Lucky before rubbing the back of his neck. “Make fun of it all you want but it just makes me uh more professional!” Clint exclaimed as he placed his hands on his hips.

‘Mm sure. I’m not making fun of you, I think it’s cute if anything. You clearly were made to live in a much nicer place than like this…’ She mumbled, taking a look at the mess that was his apartment. ‘Not even sure I wanna see the state of your bedroom,’ She teased as she slowly made her way over to his bedroom door as she raised up her eyebrow.

Clint scoffed as he walked over to where she was standing and pushed open the door for her. “By all means, you are welcome inside. If you wanted to come into my bedroom you didn’t have to make such an elaborate plan,” He teased with a smirk before stepping in himself. “I gotta style my hair anyway so you can look around I don’t care,” Clint said with a shrug before walking into his bedroom so he could reach the bathroom that was directly attached to it.

‘You’re very funny Clint,’ Nat said with the roll of her eyes before she stepped inside his bedroom so she could nosy around the place. It was pretty much what she had expected, clothes on the floor with empty food cartons and mugs everywhere. Though unlike her bedroom at home it was absolutely packed with what she could only describe as different pieces of Clint’s personality.

There wasn’t an empty spot in his room as the walls were covered in posters of his favourite movies and video games. A small smile appeared on her lips, it was very Clint and for one reason or the other, it seemed to remind her of a home that she never had.

Walking over to his bed, she scoffed at the fact he hadn’t bothered to make his bed but there was something that caught her eye. On his bedside table there was a single photo frame and inside was a very familiar picture. 

Upon further inspection, she lifted the frame up only to be met with a picture of the two of them that must have been taken four years ago or something because they still looked like they had some life left in them. Another agent had snapped a picture of the two of them in the middle of the conversation as Clint had said something funny which had made her laugh. The picture encased the pure joy of the moment and up until now, she didn’t even realise the picture existed.

A smile turned up the entirety of her face as she carefully ran a finger across the glass. She didn’t really take Clint to be a sentimental man but here he was sleeping next to a picture of the two of them. While it might not seem much to some, just this knowledge lit something up in her heart that hadn’t been touched in a long long time.

The sound of the bathroom door alerted her to quickly place down the photo frame as her hands went up to dab the corners of her eyes that had gotten a little wet. 

“You alright? Hope the state of my room didn’t disgust you too much,” Clint said with a smile before peering behind her noticing that the photo frame had been moved. And from the way in which Nat was looking at him, he got the idea that she had taken note of it.

Natasha nodded with a small smile before she cleared her throat. ‘I’m not sure how you live in such a state,’ She said before walking towards the door. ‘We better get going, not sure Steve and Peggy will appreciate us being late to their wedding,’

* * *

The two agents arrived at the wedding venue, which was in Central Park. Not exactly the most traditional thing out there but nothing about the couple screamed traditional, to begin with.

Upon arriving at the park, it was fairly obvious where to go considering that there was a massive white tent-like gazebo set up in the centre of the park. They were seemingly on time as a flood of other guests had begun to walk towards the setup that was just outside the gazebo.

An arch had been placed next to the gazebo and two aisles of white chairs had been set out, the majority of which had already been taken up by guests.

Clint turned to Nat as he was already lost on what to do. “Right so where do we sit? I mean isn’t there supposed to be the groom and the bride’s sides? But technically we are here for both so I don’t know. Fuck why are weddings so confusing? This is why you just go to city hall and get it done there, so much easier,” He grumbled, talking from experience, as he carefully grabbed her arm to stop her from walking off without him.

Natasha laughed softly as she turned around so she could look up at the blonde. ‘Not sure why you’re asking me, this is my first wedding too.’ She grumbled and narrowed her eyes up at him. The way in which he said that was somewhat questionable, almost like he had done it before but she knew him and he definitely wasn’t the type to get married. Right? Shaking her head, she took a look around the seats and managed to spot some familiar faces.

‘I see Tony and Thor over here. Let’s just go sit with them. Bruce is there too c’mon,’ She mumbled before tugging Clint to follow her as she made her way over to the left aisle of seats and took a seat behind Tony who had secured a front-row seat.

It was long until the ceremony kicked into place. Steve was stood at the front by the alter, his suit had been specifically tailored for him but it was very classical. A white shirt paired along with a dark waistcoat and jacket as he wore a lighter tie which had an American themed tie clip attached to it. It was subtle but classy nonetheless.

To his right stood Bucky Barnes the best man, Steve’s long time best friend who he had recently rekindled with upon discovering that he was still alive. On the other side of the altar stood Pepper Potts who had been the one who had helped Peggy readjust into the modern world and was there to act as her maid of honour. 

As far as weddings came this was probably the best-protected one considering that the majority of their guests were combat trained in multiple ways so there were not many worries surrounding an interruption of any sorts.

“Is the wedding gonna start soon? No-one told me how boring these are,” He mumbled which earned him an elbow in the ribs from Nat alongside a death stare. Though it was almost like he could predict the future because just as those words left his mouth, the wedding march began to play and Peggy began to walk down the aisle. 

Carter was wearing a somewhat ‘traditional’ wedding dress. It was white accompanied with long sleeves and the dress got wider as it fell down to the floor. The dress itself was modest besides the back, which revealed a fair amount of skin across her back. It described her personality perfectly and she looked absolutely beautiful in such a dress.

It wasn’t long until she had reached the altar where Steve was standing. The sight of the pair was one to behold as it was clear that these two people were madly in love with one another. Steve cast a look over to his to be wife and smiled fondly at her, this was definitely going to be a day to remember that was for sure.

 _‘We are here today to join Steven Grant Rogers and Margaret Elizabeth Carter in the life of mutual commitment. It is fitting and appropriate that you, the family and friends be here to witness and to participate in their union. For the ideals, the understanding, and the mutual respect which they bring to their life together has roots in the love and friendship and guidance you have given them. The union of two people make us aware of the changes wrought by time. But the new relationship will continue to draw much of its beauty and meaning from the intimate associations of their past.’_ The priest spoke in a soft tone, addressing the entirety of the crowd.

 _‘Have the two of you prepared vows?’_ He questioned which caused the couple to both nod before turning to one another. 

Steve cleared his throat before speaking up. _‘Peggy. I met you back when you were much taller than me and probably could lift me up and throw me around. As you know that’s clearly not the case any more,’_ Steve said smiling which earnt a couple of chuckles from the audience. _‘When I woke up from the ice I was sure that I was never going to see you again. For a while I was lost, confused because I knew at that point you were the love of my life and I thought I’d lost you forever,’_ He said, tears clearly forming in his eyes before choking them back so he could continue on his vows. 

_‘You make me the man I have always aspired to be and for that I can’t thank you with enough words or love on the Earth to show that. I love you and I always will and I am one lucky man to be marrying you today,’_ The blonde said, a feeble smile forming at his lips as he looked over at Bucky as he was waiting for him to deliver the ring.

Bucky was quick to walk up and hold the box open for Steve to grasp the slender, silver ring before reaching forward and taking her hand as he slid the ring onto her ring finger.

With a trembling smile, Peggy nodded before looking up at Steve. _‘As crazy as it may sound, I've known I was supposed to marry you long before you proposed. I will never forget that car ride we shared before you took the serum. The idea of finding the right partner touched me in ways you probably didn't realize back then… You gave me hope. Whether you're taller or shorter, it doesn't matter to me. I considered you mine both then and now, the serum played no part in things. You're kind and gentle with me in ways I'll forever be grateful for. With you, I know that I'll always be treated with nothing but affection and respect and you will receive nothing but the same in return. As your wife, I'll always be by your side no matter what. The thought of being with you till the end of time thrills me. There's not a single person I'd rather spend that time with and I'm so lucky so have you in my life. I love you so much my darling, I hope by this point you can see how much you truly mean to me.’_ She said all in one knowing that if she paused the tears might get the best of her.

Turning to Pepper, Peggy reached out to grab the ring she had picked out for Steve before turning back to Steve as she slid his ring on his finger.

Once the couple had both delivered the vows to one another, Clint was practically in tears at this point as he held a hand up to his face as he wiped his cheeks. ‘Are you seriously crying right now? This isn’t even your wedding!’ Nat whispered, trying to hide her giggles as her eyes shifted from the couple and towards Clint.

“Yes, I’m crying because it’s beautiful. It’s obvious how much they love each other man I totally get this whole wedding thing now. Fucking missed out,” He mumbled before wiping his eyes. “Be quiet this is the good bit,” He whispered as he cast a gaze over toward the front.

 _‘In the name of the Holy Spirit, I now solemnly declare you husband and wife. Let no one put asunder those that have been joined together today in the presence of almighty God. You may now kiss the bride.’_ The priest spoke as he held out his hands for the two to kiss.

The two didn’t wait for even a second before they collided with one another in a sweet kiss, Steve’s hand going up to cradle Peggy’s cheek as everyone sat down suddenly rose up in a cheer as they began to clap.

* * *

As soon as the ceremony came to a close the wedding quickly shifted into the Gazebo where the newlyweds shared their first dance, which was fairly ironic considering the one thing they never got was their dance.

Once that was over it was time to serve food which was interesting, to say the least. The person in charge of seating had decided that it was a good idea to rope all the Avengers together and let them and their loved ones sit on one table which was just a recipe for pure chaos.

During the meal, Thor had spilt not one, not two but three drinks on separate occasions and every time it would be all over himself and the person next to him who just happened to be poor Bruce. Luckily it seemed that he had control over his anger otherwise the whole wedding would be going a little different. 

Not only was the meal packed full of drink spills and bad jokes, but it was also genuinely a nice meal. It wasn’t often the six of them got to sit down and enjoy a period of time with one another without the hassle of thinking the whole world is going to collapse without them on a constant lookout.

The end of the meal eventually rolled around and that signified it was party time from here on out. The music switched from the slow-rolling kind to the sort that made you want to jump from your seat and dance, which the majority of the room ended doing in only minutes of the meal ending.

With everyone else getting out of their chairs, Clint instantly turned to his right where Natasha was sat with a small smile on his lips. “Would you care to join me on the dance floor?” He asked as he reached out and grasped her hand and tugged her upwards not giving her much of a choice.

‘Clint… You know I’m not much of a dancer,’ She whined as she got up begrudgingly knowing that she didn’t have much of an option so just followed him onto the dance floor.

Shaking his head, he pulled her onto the dance floor with a big old smile. “I know for a fact that you are a liar. You can dance like there’s no tomorrow and your gonna dance with me right now,” He said as he pulled her closer so he could place a hand on her waist as they danced. 

Rolling her eyes, she grumbled some inaudible words as she allowed herself to be pulled closer to the man as she adjusted the grip on his hand before copying what he had done by placing her hand on his hip. ‘Right I forgot you were the one that can’t dance for shit my bad,’ She teased as they rocked back and forth in time with the music. 

“Oh come on! I can dance! Look we are dancing right now. I may be awful at many things but dancing is my true talent. Maybe I should switch up careers? I was thinking country singer,” He yelled over the music as he bounced back and forth to the music which let a string of laughter to come out of Natasha’s lips.

From the other side of the tent sat the newlyweds who were taking a break from dancing. The two were in and out of conversation, most of it being gossip about the guests and how drunk they were. _‘Would you look at those two dancing. I can’t be the only one who see’s something there right?’_ Peggy asked as she leant towards Steve as she nodded towards Clint and Nat who were dancing and giggling away ten feet from where they sat.

Tilting his head to the side, Steve shrugged his shoulders before glancing over towards his wife. _‘I mean I dunno. Seems like they really love this song? What about it?’_ He questioned.

Peggy scoffed before rolling her eyes as she swatted him on the arm. _‘Sure. They love the song. Nothing else clearly,’_ She said in a very sarcastic manner before pointing at them once again. _‘Steven your telling me that you think those two people are just friends? I mean I know your oblivious but come on look at them. Idiots in love.’_ Peggy said as she watched Steve’s facial expression change.

 _‘Oh my god. Your so right, which is usually the case but how did I not see this??? It makes sense now. God. Do you think they even know? I mean look at them. Kinda reminds me of us,’_ Steve said as he gently nudged Peggy before indulging back into conversation.

The dance between Clint and Nat didn’t even stop once the song changed or once it was clear that Clint was extremely out of breath. They kept at it because while the room was packed full of people, it felt like the first real bit of privacy that they had in ages.

‘Are you out of breath Barton? And to think I thought you could last longer than five minutes,’ Natasha whispered with a smirk as she leant up so he would be able to hear her over the music.

Huffing out another breath of air, Clint aggressivley shook his head. “I mean there is only one real way of finding that out afterall. But trust me I’m just a little out of shape that’s all,” Clint said with a small wink as they continued. 

Lifting her head up a little higher, a soft laugh escaped her lips as she shook her head. ‘You’re a funny one you are,’ She chuckled before casting a gaze up into his sky-blue orbs. Maybe this was the time, the chance to do the one thing that been on her mind since they had left his apartment. 

It seemed that her subconscious had decided to take control because she was suddenly grounded as she felt the hot breath escape Clint’s mouth and hit her lips. It was finally happening and there was absolutely nothing that could stop her so she stood a little taller before leaning in with full intentions of kissing him. 

Or at least that was the plan because just as she was centimeters away from finally sealing the deal, an explosion could be heard that wasn’t any further than a block or two away. 

The agents sighed in unison as they looked back into each others eyes before smiling. ‘How about we finish this later? World is supposed to come first you know’ Nat said with a small smile, trying to hide her immense disappointment considering she had worked up the courage to finally make a move only for it to be shot down instantly. 

Clint nodded as he swallowed thickly before letting go of her and taking a step back. His disappointment was immeasurable, especially as he was just about to get the one thing he wanted so badly that his heart couldn’t take it. Though nevermind that, he and the other avengers needed to gather together and figure out what their plan of action was. “Man the good guy never get’s the girl,”


	9. I promise not to say you gave me aids next time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Avengers are tasked with stopping a bank robbery which ends up with Clint getting injured, though that might be for the best.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Right, I have forced myself to make sure I get this done by Friday because I really want to try and post once a week. Now finally some things happen in this chapter and when I say I was so excited to write this I wasn't over exaggerating in the slightest. Near the end of the chapter I will admit I saw this line on Tumblr and I just had to use it in my fic, it cracks me up so much. Anyway, I loved this chapter and would love to hear your thoughts! - J

Not even a minute had passed since the explosion had gone off just a block or two away from the wedding and all the avengers had already gathered together. It was a rarity to have all six of them in one place at one time so of course, they were going to take advantage of that.

The six of them stood to the side, glancing over towards the newlywed for directions considering that despite the fact Steve had just got married he was still their so-called leader after all.

 _‘Alright so this isn’t exactly ideal but the explosion didn’t sound like it was very far from where we were so we might as well go ahead and check it out. Tony, Thor you guys go ahead and scope it out as you’ll be able to get there faster. Bruce not sure if this is the job for the big guy so you’ll act as out overwatch, talking to us over comms. Nat, Clint, you’re with me. We’ll take the streets and sort out any civilians that might be in danger’_ The blonde said, addressing each one of the Avengers before taking a step back.

Tony and Thor nodded before moving along. Thor shot up into the air in an instant whereas Tony went to go find Pepper as she had the suitcase that contained his suit. Bruce, on the other hand, smiled ever so slightly knowing that he didn’t have much of a part to play in this mission.

“I assume we can’t get a cab? Your gonna make us run aren’t you?” Clint said with a grin which caused Steve to laugh before patting him on the back.

 _‘Oh come on. You could use the exercise after all. Now come on let’s go,’_ Steve said with a grin before undoing his tie and tossing his jacket to the side as he headed towards the nearest exit.

Natasha grinned before jabbing him in the ribs. ‘Hah, what did I say? Even Steve agrees. Now come on, get your lazy ass in motion. We have a job to do,” She said with a smirk before following Steve, gesturing for Clint to follow her. 

Barton grumbled a bunch of profanities under his breath before breaking out into a sprint after the other two, at this point he could only hope that it was a false alarm. A perfectly good wedding had been wasted.

* * *

It wasn’t long until all five Avengers had arrived at the sight of the explosion which happened to be from what was assumed to be a bank robbery. Tony and Thor were the first on the scene, taking note of how many people were inside before feeding that information back to Bruce and the others.

“Are you serious?! A bank robbery is the reason why I’m not eating cake right now. I’ve come to the conclusion that the universe hates me,” Clint grumbled as the three of them stopped right outside the bank which had all alarms blaring.

 _‘Alright alright. You two take the front. I’m gonna loop round the back and try to sneak upon them. You can distract them right?’_ Steve said but didn’t wait for an answer as he went to try and get into the bank from the back entrance.

Glancing over towards Nat, he just shrugged untucking his shirt from his pants before reaching behind him and revealing a dual set of Glocks that he had stuffed down the waist of his pants for an emergency. Turning them over in his hands, he threw one over to Nat so she would have something to defend herself with before reloading it.

‘Wow look at you, I see you came packing,’ She said with a grin as she successfully caught the gun before reloading it and began to walk up towards the front doors of the bank. 

Scoffing, Clint shook his head with a sort of smile before following her. “I mean when you phrase it like that it changes the whole topic of discussion,” He said with a slight smirk before following her up the stairs.

“A distraction did he say? Well then that’s exactly what he is gonna get,” Clint muttered to mainly himself before gripping the Glock tightly with both of his hands before pointing the gun into the air and shooting. “Hey, bad guys! I’m here with a gun and I’m gonna stop you!” He yelled before pausing as he waited for a response. 

Natasha on the other hand wasn’t expecting Barton to literally shoot his gun so soon, so practically jumped out of her skin before delivering a hard blow to his upper arm. ‘What the hell Barton? Are you actually trying to get us killed?’ She whispered in a harsh tone before peering through the small window that was attached to the door.

Rolling his eyes in the redhead’s direction, he simply shrugged his shoulders. “Getting killed … Getting the job done they are interchangeable. And hey you’ve got my back, I’ll be fine.” He said with a small sort of smile before going onto kicking the front door of the bank which only backfired as it seemed that the door had been barricaded.

Stumbling back ever so slightly, Clint regained his balance while Nat held back a laugh as he nearly toppled over. “Second times the charm,” Barton grumbled under his breath before taking a few steps back in order to give him enough room to get a running start towards the door.

Next thing he knew his shoulder had collided with the door, which to his surprise was enough to force to break the barricade causing the door to fly open along with Clint.

“What the fu-” He began but didn’t manage to finish his sentence as he came crashing through the door and fell head over heels to the ground which had caused Natasha to completely lose it in laughter.

Though making such a racket had worked as enough of a distraction because as soon as Clint pushed himself up he was met with a pair of legs that he didn’t recognise.  
The blonde’s eyes slowly travelled up the body of the owner of the mysterious legs until he lifted his head just high enough to realise that he had literally handed himself over to the bank robbers. 

Snapping his head over towards Nat, he hoped that she had his back but there were already two guys behind her leaving any residual hope to drain from his system. Before doing anything, he reached up to reposition his hearing aids because the impact of his body hitting the floor had been enough to knock the left one out of his ear completely.

“Well shit,” He grumbled before dropping his gun and raising his hands over his head.

 _‘You two are coming will us. More hostages the better,’_ The man nearest to Clint said before grabbing his arm forcing him to stand before pushing him further into the bank, with nat not too far behind him.

‘Way to go Barton. What did you think was gonna happen?’ Natasha hissed as the two agents finally arrived in the main bank vault which contained all the bank workers that had previously been taken hostage.

“I dunno? I was hoping I’d have more time and maybe you could have at least to try and shoot one of them. It was two skilled agents against three douche bags we would have totally won that fight,” Clint grumbled under his breath before being shoved into a sitting down position only to have Natasha right next to him as her captors did the same.

The two agents shared a grim look before glancing around the room, there were at least eight other hostages that had been tied up looking a little worse for wear. If they were planning on getting out of here they were going to need the help of the other Avengers as they were now trapped.

Though just because they were trapped in the bank vault doesn’t mean Clint wasn’t going to do his job. Steve had asked him to do something so of course, he was going to do it. 

“You do know who I am right?” Clint spoke up, his voice being aimed at the two guys that were guarding the only entrance to the vault.

Natasha jabbed him in the ribs before giving him a death stare. ‘Shut the hell up. I think we’ve distracted them enough already as is, just leave it alone,’ She whispered before glancing over towards their captors but it was too late, they had already heard Barton.

Laughter filled the room as one of the masked individuals approached Clint and looked him up and down. _‘Oh is that so? I wasn’t aware we were in the presence of a celebrity,’_ He scoffed which only seemed to rile Clint up more than anything else.

“Well yeah. I am an Avenger afterall. Hawkeye you ever heard of him? The deaf one with the bow and arrows. That’s me alright so I think you should try treating me with some respect,” Clint said with a sort of smirk, hoping that he would be able to engage in conversation just long enough to give Steve and the others a chance to breach through the doors unsuspected.

It seemed that Clint’s big talk did the exact opposite of what he was aiming for because the man was becoming more aggravated by the second. _‘Oh is that so? Big talk from the guy who is a hostage. If I were you I would keep that big mouth shut before someone gets hurt,’_ He warned.

‘Listen to him Clint. It’s not worth getting hurt for,’ Nat whispered as she reached over to grab his arm, hoping that he would be forced to look at her before talking again. 

Turning his head to the side, Clint looked at her before shaking his head. “I’ve got this don’t worry,” He said with a small smile before looking back up to the man.

“I mean I wouldn’t really call this a hostage situation. I’m voluntarily here, like I mean you heard me when I said I’m an avenger right? I wasn’t kidding! I mean c’mon just take one look at me and you’ll kno-” Clint began to ramble but was interrupted as a single shot ran through the air.

A look of confusion spread over Clint’s face as he was a little slow to process the whole situation. Or at least that was when he felt a warm liquid starting to pool at the bottom of his pants.

Snapping his head down, his eyes glossed over a new hole that had ripped through his pants and the flesh that surrounded his thigh. “What the fuck?! You shot me?!” Clint exclaimed before yelping out in pain as he grabbed his thigh.

 _‘What did you think was gonna happen dumbass? We don’t have time to listen to your whining so shut up unless you want another bullet,’_ The masked man mused before walking back to the vault door to return to his station outside of it.

‘You are such a fucking dumbass Barton,’ Nat whisper screamed as she punched him in the upper arm before removing his hand from his calf so she could take a better look at the wound. ‘You couldn’t keep your mouth shut for just five minutes could you? No of course not, that’s an impossible feat,’ She spat before turning her head so she could meet his eyes.

Huffing out a breath of air, Clint screwed his face up in a wince as he leant back on his hands. He still had some movement in his leg meaning that the majority of his nerves were still intact and would stay that way if the wound was addressed in the near future.

“Alright alright I get it. I’m a dumbass, I’m an idiot all the insults yeah whatever but right now can we focus on the fact that I just got shot and I might bleed out if we don’t do something,” Clint spat back before lifting his head so he could look at her.

Once their eyes met, his facial features softened ever so slightly before sighing softly. “I’m sorry alright, it’s my fault we are in this situation and whatever but I’m sorry,” He mumbled before pushing himself back so he could lean against the wall.

Natasha clenched her jaw before allowing a small smile creep onto her lips despite everything that had just happened. ‘Well it’s a good job I like you huh? We are just gonna have to wait this out, Steve should be here soon,’ She whispered, glancing around the room before allowing her eyes to settle back onto Clint’s face as no one was really paying attention to them. After all he had just gotten shot, it was reasonable for the other hostages to want nothing to do with him. 

‘Hey look at me. It’s going to be just fine and that reminds me … I owe you something,’ Natasha said with a smile before shuffling closer to his side. Curling two fingers under his chin, she lifted his head up so he could meet her gaze.

Clint frowned slightly as he felt her fingers curl under his chin causing him to look over at her in confusion. “Yeah? What might that be?” He asked, still being in denial of any sort of feeling that he felt towards her despite everything that had happened today.

The red-head chuckled but didn’t answer his question. Instead she kept their gazes locked before she began to lean in, though this time she was going to make sure that they weren’t interrupted. 

It was only then Clint got the hint of what she was trying to do, which lead for the faintest of smiles to perk up his lips before he leant in as well only for their lips to meet in a kiss.

This one wasn’t much different to the previous ones the two agents shared but at least this time they finally knew that their feelings were partially reciprocated.

Clint lifted his hand up to cup her cheek as he tilted his head to the side, allowing him to deepen the kiss. This was something he had been waiting for, for a very long time and he wasn’t going to let anything stop him. Not even the fact that there were at lest eight other people in the room practically watching them kiss didn’t put him off in the slightest. 

The kiss between the two agents lasted for a few more seconds before Nat eventually pulled back with a smile. ‘Well that was nice,’ She muttered against his lips as she moved her hand to cup his cheek, her thumb gently brushed his cheek.

Barton chuckled as his eyes fluttered open once again. “Yeah you could say that. This isn’t how imagined our first kiss to go,” He said as he rested her forehead against his own, this was providing him with enough of a distraction to draw away from the pain radiating around his leg.

Laughter left Natasha’s lips as she brushed her fingers through his hair, allowing herself to just enjoy the moment rather than having to over think every movement. ‘I’m not sure whether to be surprised or not that you imagined this before, you wouldn’t be the only one. Though in my vision there was a lot less blood and it was much more romantic,’ She said with a smile.

“What is this not romantic enough for you? My blood is literally all over your hands. It doesn’t get much more romantic than this I’m just saying,” Clint muttered with a soft sigh. In that very moment in time his heart felt full, a feeling that he had been lacking for years now. “Thank you,” He breathed out, a smile taking over the entirety of his face as he carefully tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear. 

Though Natasha couldn’t say anything else back to him because all of a sudden shots had been fired just outside the vault.

Pulling back from the archer, her hands fell back into her lap as her head snapped towards the door. ‘Well it sounds like our ride is here. Come on let’s get up,’ She muttered as she turned to Clint and wrapped her arm around his waist.

“About time. Any later and we would actually have to talk about our feelings. Could you imagine that?” He grumbled in a somewhat passive aggressive tone as Nat helped him onto his feet, though he couldn’t put any pressure on his wounded leg whatsoever meaning he was pretty much relying on her to help move him.

Eventually the gunshots outside died down only to have Steve and Thor replace the masked men in the door way. “Took you long enough,” Clint scoffed as he slung an arm around Nat’s shoulder as he winced. 

_‘Sorry someone was meant to cause a distraction. Wait is that a gunshot? They shot you?’_ Steve said as he quickly ran over to give Nat a hand with Clint.

“Yeah they fucking shot me. What does it look like? And I’m sorry sacrificing my life wasn’t enough for you Mr Patriot,” Clint spat as he accepted Steve’s help nonetheless.

‘Don’t let him fool you Steve. He wouldn’t shut up so they shot him. It was quite funny actually, shame you missed it,’ Nat said with a grin before they moved towards the vault entrance so they could get Clint out of there. A quick call and it wouldn’t be long until Clint could get the medical attention that he needed.

* * *

Hours passed and the bank robbery had been successfully dealt with. S.H.I.E.L.D. medics were quick to arrive on the scene of the crime and carefully escorted Clint back to the headquarters in order to patch him up.

Luckily for him it was nothing major, just a simple removal of the shrapnel from his leg and then it was just stitched back up once it was clean.

After the procedure had happened, he was transferred into one of the recovery rooms until he was fit enough to get back to business.

A general warmth surrounding his hand was what slowly brought Clint back into the world of consciousness. At first he couldn’t hold his eyes open because the room was so bright it hurt to even open his eyes in just the slightest.

It took a couple of attempts but by the end of it he was able to hold his eyes open for a longer period of time. His eyes wandered down to his hand as he was curious to see where this warmth was coming from.

Much to his surprise he saw a somewhat smaller hand clamped around his own and slowly but surly his eyes travelled up the arm in order to identify who the hand belonged to. 

‘Well well well. Look who finally decided to wake up. Did you sleep well?’ Natasha asked, who was perched on the side of his bed with Clint’s hand grasped tightly in her own.

A smile perked up Bartons face as he nodded before gently squeezing her hand. “Yeah I did actually. Had a wild dream though. We tried to single handly stop a bank robbery. Didn’t end well, I got shot and then most surprisngly of all you kissed me. Weird dream right?” He said with a smile.

Nat let a soft laugh escape her lips before nodding. ‘Wow that really does sound like a crazy dream. I mean I would have thought that even my dream self would have better taste, clearly not’ She said before turning her body ever so slightly in order to get a better look at the man. 

For a little while she had been seriously concerned for his health. The two of them never really got seriously hurt while on missions so this was sort of a first for her. Natasha was just glad he ended up alright, though she wasn’t going to let him know she was worried to begin with.

“Now that’s just plain rude. Does that mean real Nat won’t kiss real Clint?” Barton asked with a slight smirk as he sat up ever so slightly, wincing gently as he did so. He could still move his injured leg, it was just going to be a pain having to use crutches to get all around the place.

Nat’s cheeks tinted red ever so slightly as she turned her head to the side in order to hide it before letting out a laugh. ‘I never said that now did I?’ She said before turning her head in order to lock eye contact with him.

‘You just need to promise me you’ll try stop being such a dumbass,’ She said as she let go of his hand in order to stretch out her arm with just her pinky raised for him to make a pinky promise with her.

Sighing softly, Clint rolled his eyes at her hand but stretched his hand out and took his pinky and wrapped it around hers. “I pinky promise to try and be less of a dumbass. Which is very difficult for me but for you, I will try. Maybe. No I will that was a joke,” He said with a smile.

‘That’s what I thought,’ She said with a smile before leaning over to softly connect their lips, something at this point just felt natural.

This time Clint was the one to reach up and cup her cheek as they shared a kiss. The whole situation was so unrealistic, something that he could only have dreamt up but here he was experiencing it in real life and it was better than he could have ever imagined. Her lips gave him a sense of clarity, allowing him to know what was real or not because that feeling of her lips brushing against his own was something he could never recreate in his imagination.

‘Clint….’ Natasha uttered against his lips as she begrudgingly pulled back. ‘We shouldn’t … Not here at least,’ She said softly with a smile before carefully pulling his hand off of her cheek. If people saw them together, news would spread like wildfire and in a matter of hours their bosses would catch wind of it. Being romantic with other agents was pretty much a big no no which was both a good and bad thing, especially for Natasha.

Not only did that give her an excuse to take things as slow as physically possible with Clint. She did not do relationships, like ever. Casual hook-ups were more her style but with Clint it was different, very different so that was something she did not want to mess up.

Clearing his throat, Clint nodded as he dropped his hand down. “Right yeah, that would be smart,” He mumbled before rubbing the back of his neck. Clint was trying his hardest to act nonchalant but he knew that he was longing for this in everyway possible.

“Uh where’s the others? They busy or something?” He asked, trying his hardest to quickly change the subject before the conversation grew awkward with feelings.

‘Yeah they are setting up a conference. Something to do with the bank robbery. We were all invited but I said we’d pass considering the state your in,’ She said as she gently patted his leg.

Clint’s face contourted into a look of horror before quickly trying to get out of bed as quickly as he could, which was much harder than it seemed. “You what? There is a press conference right now and I’m going to miss it? I don’t think so. Will you get my clothes, we’re going,” He winced as he carefully swung his legs over the side of the bed.

Natasha stood up as Clint began to get out a bed, keeping a wary eye over him as he did so. ‘Are you sure? I mean sure we can go but it’s not that important’ She mused before walking to the other side of the room to grab his clean set of clothes before placing them next to him.

“Yeah I’m sure! You know how fun those can be, answering all the questions no one else wants to. The last one was a blast so I am not missing out. Plus what sorta Avengers conference is it with only four of them? Exactly it isn’t one.” Clint rambled before reaching around his hospital gown and tugged at the knot causing the gown to slide down his chest.

‘Oh your getting changed. I’ll turn around then’ Natasha said as her cheeks hinted red before spinning on her heels, though she had enough time to get a pretty good look and she wasn’t disappointed in the slightest. 

Clint smirked as he began to change into the clean clothes. “I mean I don’t mind you watching, always perform better in front of an audience anyway,” He said, smirking to himself as he very cautiously pulled on a pair of jeans. “Alright I am somewhat clothed, you can look guilt-free now,” Barton said as he began threading his belt through his jeans.

Clearing her throat, Nat shrugged as she turned around only to see Clint wearing jeans and only jeans. She never got flustered, like ever but there was just something about him that made that statement false. ‘Well I see someones been doing their daily pushups. What do you want a medal? You can stop flexing now,’ She teased as she crossed her arms over her chest. 

Scoffing, Clint turned his back to her so he could grab his t-shirt. “Haha very funny. And I am not flexing, this is just what I naturally look like. It’s okay to be jealous,” He said with a grin before pulling his shirt over his head.

“Alright I am ready to go, though I might be a bit slow. Afterall I am now double disabled. Is that a thing? No I don’t think it is I take that back,” He said as he limped over to where his crutches were resting in order to slide his arms into each arm brace.

“After you ma’am. Though if you could hold the door for me that would be great,” Clint said as he nodded towards the door, it wouldn’t be long until the two of them were at the conference.

* * *

Despite Clint insisting that they got a cab, somehow the pair were still late to the conference meaning that not only were there not seats for them prepared but they also had to share a mic.

Sadly the conference was nothing of interest, just the usual questions about response time and damage costs though this time there wasn’t much to talk about considering it was a fairly basic job. Nonetheless nearly every media company had shown up and were sat in the audience awaiting their answers. 

Steve was mostly answering the questions as he had been the one to practically stop the robbery in the first place. Though towards the end, a question was finally directed at Clint and his injury.

 _‘I heard from a source that Hawkeye was shot in the process of stopping the robbery?’_ A reporter questioned, which instatnly brought Clint out of his daydream.

Practically snatching the microphone from Natasha, he held it up to his mouth so he could answer the question. “Yup that’s right. I was caught in the crossfire while trying to help my teammat-” He began before Nat reached across and wrestled the microphone off of him.

‘I would like to clarify as the only other person there that he is lying. He got shot because he annoyed our captors so much because he wouldn’t shut his goddamn mouth,’ Nat said with a smirk as she turned to look at him with a smug look. 

Her answer caused for the entire audience to burst out into a chatter as flashing lights went off, capturing the moment. 

“Well thank you for that. Now my face is gonna be all over the papers with some dumb title,” Clint groaned as he rubbed his face, which only caused Nat to break out into hysterics. 

The rest of the conference went fairly smoothly, not any honourable mentions - or at least that was what Clint thought of it. If he was honest he would have rather of just stayed in that hospital bed with Nat, it would have been far more entertaining that whatever this was supposed to be. 

Though just as they were ending things, Clint wanted to end things with a little spice. Turning over to Nat, he plucked the microphone out of her hand that she had been protecting thus far and held it up to his mouth.

“Now I would like to take this opportunity to thank the man himself, Tony Stark, for giving me his aids,” Clint said clearly through the mic, a wicked grin spread over his lips as he watched the pure horror unravel amongst his teammates.

Tony practically choked on his water as he quickly grabbed his mic and brought it closer. _'HE MEANS HEARING AIDS! I GAVE HIM NEW HEARING AIDS!_ Tony corrected as Nat snatched the mic from the now cackling Clint before delivering a hefty blow to his upper arm for saying such a controversial thing to a room full of press.

“Now that is gonna be fun to read in the papers,” Clint mused as he crossed his arms over his chest clearly happy with the chaos he had managed to cause in such a short span of time.

 _‘Alright and with that I think we are gonna end the panel,’_ Steve said before giving a somewhat amused look in Clint’s direction before settling back in his chair.

With Steve calling the conference to a close, it was only a matter of time until the large hall was practically just filled with empty chairs and the six Avengers were huddled by the side door just waiting for the last of the press to leave so they could be on their way.

 _‘Well with that now in the past, are you guys up for a team bonding night? Pizza, beer, games? It’s been a while?’_ Steve suggested, to which everyone nodded enthusiastically with smiles across the board.

“It’s settled then, game night! Though uh can we stop by my apartment? My dog is still home alone…” Clint mumbled before turning over to Tony with an apologetic smile. “Sorry about the whole aids thing. It was kinda funny though right? I promise not to say you gave me aids next time,”


	10. Now shut up and kiss me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Avengers celebrate a successful day by having a game night, things end up getting a little heated between Clint and Nat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyo! Right now this one is a little shorter just because it's been a busy week but didn't want to let anyone down so I delivered none the less! Once again I did indeed just have a bit of fun with it and it did get a little more intense than I was planning on so just a bit of a warning, there is nothing is extremely explicit just a little spicy that's all. Anyway I hope you enjoy! - J
> 
> Edit:
> 
> Only now realising I didn't post the last sentence SMH meaning it made no sense lmao, this is why you don't post at 1 am. All fixed now!

With the Avengers now finished with their press conference, it wasn’t long until all six of them had arrived back at the Avengers tower - which was previously known as Stark towers until Tony decided to turn the place around after the battle of new york occurred.

Each separate Avenger had their own living area which was specifically designated for them which contained their own bed and bathroom, it was practically like living in an apartment complex but the only difference was that they had a whole floor to themselves rather than just a singular room.

Tony had made sure that each of them would be comfortable and even made his own personal adjustments to everyone’s floor. 

So for Steve, he had made an area in which was stacked full of important history and pop culture from the last seventy or so years as well as some art supplies. Thor had an exit through his window, for any time that he needed to have a quick flying scape. Bruce’s area was packed full of relaxing aromas and paintings as well as his own dedicated library which contained all the fields that he was interested in. Natasha’s room was fairly plain but he had installed a surround sound system as well as mirrors across half of the wall so she could practice her dancing in peace. Then Clint’s room was filled to the brim with his personality, the walls covered in posters and frames with a large tv that spread across from the bed which had nearly all the gaming consoles that one could think of. Tony had really tried to make each of their temporary rooms feel like somewhat of a home just because he cared about his team, though he would never let them know that with words.

The journey from the conference hall to the tower didn’t take long at all as it was only a block or two away though they did get stopped on multiple occasions by screaming fans that demanded pictures - which Tony insisted that they stopped every time and took pictures with then. But they eventually made their way back into the main living area.

Clint had taken a bit of a detour, quickly running back to his apartment in order to get Lucky before returning fairly quickly with the dog with him.

Upon walking into the living area, he saw that they had pushed all the couches to the side and threw all the cushions down on the floor and there was already a stack of at least eight pizzas and three packs of beer set aside ready for consumption.

Letting Lucky off his leash, the dog leapt over towards Steve who was already perched down on the floor before Clint glanced around looking for the others. 

“Alright, I am here and somewhat queer so let’s get started huh? How about we start with Monopoly. There is nothing that can go wrong with a good old game of monopoly hm?” Clint questioned with a grin before placing himself down on one of the many cushions as the rest of the Avengers were quick to join him.

‘Right because that’s a very smart idea. Does Thor even know how to play?’ Nat questioned as she took a seat next to Clint with a small smile.

 _‘Doesn’t matter, we’ll teach him as we play but first everyone please help yourself to beer and pizza. It’s gonna be one long night,’_ Tony said before dropping the box of monopoly in the middle of the circle they had created and grabbed one of the nearest pizza boxes and instantly dug in. 

Chuckles rang throughout the room as Thor just shrugged and nodded before beginning to hand out the boxes of pizza and beers to everyone, to which Clint decided the latter but helped himself to pizza. Even going as far as to give some of the pizza to Lucky, which just so happened to be his favourite food and also his old name. 

The evening kicked itself off fairly well with a jolly old game of monopoly, which at first went well. Everyone was seemingly having a fairly fun time and joking around with one another up until the moment that Tony decided that he was going to go into try-hard mode and began to suck the fun out of everything.

The billionaire easily slipped into his real-life role of being a CEO and instantly took over the game, with having nearly every other square on the map under his name with at least one hotel on half of his properties.

It was safe to say that the game ended with Steve and Tony at one another's throats with the board and pieces all over the floor after Thor had thrown it out of rage leaving the other three Avengers to just sit back cackling at the chaos that had unravelled before them. From this moment on there was going to be a rule put in place where Monopoly was strictly banned from all Avengers related meetings.

After a little while, once everyone had calmed down, they all moved to the couch in order to play Mario Kart. As it was only a four-player game, Steve and Bruce sat out in order to cheer everyone else on, which left the other four to pretty much fight to the death.

Clint took Mario kart very seriously, he had destroyed nearly four controllers now after being practically walked on by Thor - whom for one reason or the other is scarily good at the game besides the fact he couldn’t have played more than an hour or so of the game.

So to say that tensions were high was just a little bit of an understatement. Things started off fairly smoothly, the first three races were decent as Clint came first a couple of times before Thor took over. Though surprisingly enough, Natasha was slowly creeping up the leaderboard and the archer didn’t pay much attention to this until the last race.

It couldn’t have been going any better, Clint was in the first place, Thor second and Natasha was in third - at this point, Tony had given up completely. The third lap rolled around and he was seconds away from reaching that victory when a blue symbol popped up at the top of his screen insinuating that a blue shell was heading his direction.

Letting out a very angry yell, Clint instantly rose to his feet as he screamed at the television as he watched Thor speed past him and then Natasha causing him to come in third place.

“WHO THREW THE SHELL? WHO WAS IT?” He yelled as he spun on his heels to glare down at the culprits on the sofa. To which caused Natasha to burst out into giggles as she quickly lifted her hand to cover her mouth in the process.

“IT WAS YOU?! I TRUSTED YOU!” Clint exclaimed as his jaw was now practically hanging ajar before narrowing his eyes in her direction. “And to think I called you my friend,” He huffed out before shaking his head and begrudgingly sat back down.

‘Oh come on Clint, you are being a big baby. We won fair and square, not my fault you can’t hand losing,” She teased before playfully prodding him in the side which caused the blonde to squeal as he lurched out of her touch which then proceeded to make the rest of the team join in with laughter.

Pouting, the archer dropped his controlled and crossed his arms over his chest. “Mmmmm yeah whatever. This game is so overrated anyway let’s do something else. And I’m not just saying that ‘cause I didn’t win … It’s just nice to have a variety that’s all…,” He grumbled before getting up off of the couch and walked back over to the pillows that were scattered over the floor.

A couple of grumbles came from the rest of the team but by the sounds of things they were up for a change of pace. Once the six of them were all seated once again, there was a pause of silence until Clint finally broke it.

“Alright sounds like I’ll suggest something then …” He said with a small laugh before shaking his head. “Hm how about something like truth or dare? Y’know pretending that we are at a sleepover and talk about the boys we like,” Clint said with a grin, from which by the sound of things was a pretty decent idea according to the others. 

_‘Not a bad idea but you should prepare for the worst. Just warning you now,’_ Tony said with a smirk before finishing off the last of his beer so he could go onto placing the now empty bottle in the centre of the circle.

The game started off fairly tame, the questions asked were mainly silly and light-hearted and the dares mostly included food. Though the more alcohol that was consumed, the worse things got. Especially after Thor decided to share his Asgardian liquor with Steve, showing a side to the patriot that not many had seen yet.

 _‘Alright alright alright. My turn to spin the bottle!’_ Steve said in a somewhat excited tone but didn’t wait for anyone to clarify as he spun the bottle and watched as it spun around before finally stopping and landed on Clint.

 _‘Well well well, Mr. Barton. What will it be? Truth or Dare?'_ Rogers asked as he leant forward with his head held up in his hands as he gave him a goofy smile which was making him very hard to be taken seriously.

Chuckling softly, Clint nodded before rubbing his hand against his thigh from where he had gotten shot. “Mmph alright let’s go with dare, shall we? Haven’t had one of those in a hot sec,” He mused before glancing back over towards Steve incredibly curious as to what Steve would come up with.

The super soldier went quiet for a couple of seconds as he went into a deep state of concentration in an attempt to come up with a dare that he deemed to be interesting enough. _‘Aha! I dare you to kiss another Avenger. Take your pick,’_ Steve said with a laugh before glancing around the circle as everyone else’s eye instantly turned to look at Clint, curious as to who he was going to pick.

Though before Clint even said anything, Natasha already assumed that she was going to be the one that he chose for many reasons but the main one being that they shared a certain past together and it wouldn’t be their first. But much to her surprise, it was almost like Clint knew that she assumed he was going to pick her.

So with a glint in his eye, Clint smirked at Nat before shaking his head and turned his body towards Tony. “Easy pick for me, of course, it’s going to be the handsome Tony Stark,” He said before gesturing for Tony to come over, to which he did by crawling on all fours.

Once the billionaire was close enough, Clint reached forward and placed his hand on his cheek before instantly locking lips with him. Everyone but Natasha instantly broke out into applause which was followed by laughter.

Keeping their lips locked, Clint grinned against the other man’s lips before cracking his eyes open so he could throw a sideways glance at Natasa who did not look pleased in the slightest. Which only made him hold his kiss with Tony for even longer as he winked in her direction.

Eventually, the two pulled back because Natasha had literally grabbed Clint by the arm in order to pull him away from the kiss before he sat back down.

“Not bad Stark, if you weren’t occupied with Pepper I might have to hop on that,” Clint teased as they all returned back to his seat.

Natasha on the other hand was practically still glaring at Clint as she had suddenly been overwhelmed by a very unfamiliar feeling as she watched the two kiss. It was something that just made her insides twist and knot into an uncomfortable state and she just wanted to get the image in front of her out of her brain as quickly as possible. Hence why she put an end to it as quickly as possible. 

After the kiss between Tony and Clint, the game quickly got derailed as not only Steve was drunk but so was pretty much everyone else. Thor had decided it was best to crack out the karaoke and had managed to get Bruce up in which they did a very shoddy attempt of Dancing Queen, to which neither one really knew the lyrics but it ended with them in tears from laughter.

The evening only began to escalate from there when the whipped cream was brought out from the fridge and it was safe to say that they were going to need to get a deep clean to get it out of the carpet. 

Things only began to calm down once it reached around midnight and one by one people began to go to bed because they were exhausted from doing practically nothing besides drinking. Steve headed back to his house because he had a wife to return to but the others went to their floors in order to sleep the alcohol off.

Which left the only somewhat sober people left, Clint and Nat. Well, Clint was sober, the same couldn’t exactly be said for Natasha as she had a fair amount to drink but her tolerance was a little higher than the rest of them so she was still far from blackout drunk.

Taking a long look around the room, Clint let out a huff. “I guess we should probably tidy up at least a little bit,” He grumbled before rising to his feet and began to collect empty pizza boxes and beer bottles and began to stack them up as he carried them into the kitchen.

Natasha did the same, though began to start clearing up some of the whipped cream that Steve had failed to get in his mouth off of the carpet.

“Tonight was fun though. I don’t think I have seen that much laughter come from everyone, it was nice for a change don’t you think?” Clint asked her as he walked over to Lucky who had settled down on one of the cushions on the floor.

Kneeling down next to him, Clint used both of his hands to carefully rub his sides before leaning down and pressed a kiss against his fur.

The redhead looked up and watched as Clint walked past in order to go and pet Lucky. A small smile appeared on her lips as she just sat there and watched as he interacted with the dog before finally answering him. 

‘Yeah, it was a good time. Though I didn’t realise you meant it literally when you said out of everyone Tony would be the one you would sleep with,’ She teased before standing up with all the paper towels she had used to clean up the mess. 

Frowning, Clint stood back up and crossed his arms over his chest as he waited for her to come back before replying her. “Oh, why’s that? If I didn’t know any better it sounds like someone might be jealous,” He said with a smirk before cocking his eyebrow up as she walked back over to him.

Laughter escaped the black widow’s lips before she shook her head. ‘Me jealous? Yeah nice one Barton, very funny. I don’t get jealous, especially not over you. It was more of just a general statement that’s all,’ She scoffed as she leant over to grab a couple more empty bottles.

“Oh is that so? So you wouldn’t mind if I just went about kissing all the Avengers right? Obviously, because you don’t mind, maybe I should have a checklist like a pokemon. Gotta catch ‘em all. Two down and only three more to go,” Clint said with a grin as he walked over to where she was stood, keeping a couple of feet between them.

Rolling her eyes, Nat turned around to look at him directly. ‘I mean I didn’t say that but I don’t have any control over who you mess around with so whatever, it doesn’t matter,’ She said with the shrug of her shoulders before turning back to the kitchen to put away the bottles she had collected. 

Parting his lips, Clint was going to come back with a quippy remark but by the time he had thought of one she had already disappeared back into the kitchen.

Quickly following her into the kitchen, he approached the island with his hands on his hips before speaking up. “Right I see … You clearly don’t care whatsoever, so I guess that means whatever we had is null right?” Clint said before crossing his arms over his chest.

Turning around, Nat forced her eyes shut and drew in a deep breath because she knew exactly what he was trying to do and much to her annoyance slowly but surely it was working.

Walking over towards him, she stopped a little before where he was stood and looked up at him. ‘You are a dick and you know exactly what you were doing. I mean come on you winked at me while kissing him, are you just trying to make me mad at you?’ She questioned with the quirk of an eyebrow which made Clint break out into laughter.

“I mean yeah … You made me come third in Mario kart, I had to get back somehow. Not gonna just let you push me around that easily. And besides, while it was a nice kiss, that’s all it was so don’t go getting things messed up. He does have a girlfriend,” Clint said with a soft chuckle as he shook his head.

Natasha laughed softly as she allowed for her arms to drop by her sides as she focused her gaze up to his eyes. ‘Well that’s what I was hoping but with you, it’s almost impossible to tell anything.’ She said with a smile.

Clint shook his head before rolling his eyes. “Well then, I guess I better start making my intentions clearer then,” He said as his eyes travelled down her face to finally meet her gaze.

There wasn’t a point in holding back his true feelings any more, she knew how he felt and finally so did he. So with that thought in mind, he leant down and kissed her, to which was happily received by the other party.

The two shared a kiss until Clint eventually attempted to take things a little further as he placed his hands on her waist pulling her closer to him which caused for her to pull back.

“Sorry is that not okay?” Clint muttered against her lips as he took his hands back, to which Natasha quickly grabbed them and put them back as she smiled carefully.

‘No no it’s okay, I just want to take things slow. Or at least slower than usual. I just don’t wanna mess this up, not with you,’ She whispered before kissing his lips softly.

The archer laughed a little before nodding. “You would have to do some crazy shit to mess things up trust me and I can do slow. Well try to at least,” He said with a smile before leaning back down for another kiss.

At first, things were fairly sweet, the two were being gentle with one another not rushing in the slightest but that atmosphere changed very suddenly when Nat tugged ever so slightly at his hair and bit his lower lip.

That simple act had just managed to set something off in Clint because the next thing he knew his hands were moving to under her thighs so he could lift her up and place her on the island countertops all while making out with her.

Natasha didn’t do anything to stop such an action from happening as she reached forward to grab his shirt before wrapping her legs around his waist which pulled him closer.

Eventually, Clint had to break away from the kiss so he could regain his breath but it seemed that Nat was doing just fine as she raked her fingers through his hair and began to kiss down his neck.

“Fuck Nat. Going slow huh?” He panted as he tilted his head to the side, giving more access to his neck. Lifting one of his hands from her waist, he moved it to her lower back while biting down on his lip in an attempt to stop any lewd sounds from escaping.

Pulling back from his neck, she took in a deep breath before grinning up at him. ‘Well, I think we’ve waited long enough. I sure as hell have. C’mon,’ She muttered before unwrapping her legs from his waist and shoved him back a little so she could slide off of the counter.

Grabbing his hand, she tugged for him to follow as she walked towards the elevator.

“Agreed. But where are we going?” Clint questioned as he squeezed her hand and happily followed her lead as they stepped into the elevator.

‘My room,’ She said with a smirk before pushing him against the wall as the elevator doors came to a close.

Forming a soft ‘o’ with his lips, Clint stumbled back a little as she pushed him against the wall. His heart was pounding, so much that he could hear it in his ears as she looked up at him. Swallowing thickly he just stared in awe, being fully prepared to completely submit to her.

Standing on her tippy toes, her tongue darted out to wet her lips before leaning up to press small kisses against his neck causing him to shiver until the doors pinged open as they had arrived at her floor.

Taking his hand once again, she carefully pulled him towards the door knowing that he was still somewhat injured.

Upon arriving in her bedroom, Clint quickly looked around, taking in all the different things that he had never seen before until they came to a complete stop at the foot of her bed.

Without saying anything, Nat grabbed the hem of her shirt and carefully lifted it over her shoulders before tossing it aside. Taking a step closer to him, she smiled softly and did the same to him but taking her sweet time to do so until the two of them were stood there shirtless. 

‘This is actually happening right?’ She spoke softly as she reached up to place a hand against his cheek to which Clint nodded with a smile.

“It better fucking be, otherwise I have one hell of an imagination,” He said with a laugh before tilting his head a little so he could kiss the palm of her hand. “And now that I can say this, might I say you look mighty fine,” Clint said with caused for Nat to laugh at him.

‘Shut up and get on the bed,’ She said as she gave him a gentle shove, though to her surprise he didn’t throw up much off a fuss and carefully clambered onto her bed before lying pretty much in the centre of it with a somewhat of a smug look.

Furrowing her eyebrows, she crawled over to him and practically straddled his hips and looked down at him. ‘What are you looking so pleased with yourself for?’ She questioned as she dragged a finger down his bare chest, patiently waiting for an answer.

“I mean I just wasn’t expecting you to be so bossy, not that I mind of course. I think it’s hot,” He said as he grinned up at her before firmly planting his hands on her hips.

Quirking an eyebrow at him, she leant over him with a smirk. ‘Well then tonight’s going to be interesting then,’ She mumbled before kissing him softly on the lips before deepening it.

Though it didn’t last very long as Clint carefully pushed her away so he could look at her in the eyes. “Nat listen to me, are you sure you wanna do this? ‘Cause, after you know we hook up thing, are gonna be different like forever. I just wanna make sure that’s all,” He said in a serious sort of tone.

Smiling down at him, she huffed out a breath. ‘I am very sure and I hope things are different. Plus you are in my bedroom, half-naked and I am on top of you. I’m pretty sure I want this. Now shut up and kiss me,’


	11. Your right, my shirt looks better on you

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clint and Nat share a very lazy but sweet morning with one another.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wasn't expecting to get this out so quickly but I had the morning after scene bouncing around in my head for a while now and wanted to get it out there sooner rather than later so here were are! This is literally just cuteness and fluff because it makes me happy seeing these two happy together finally so yes, that's all this chapter is for and hence why it's just a little shorter than the others. I hope you enjoy! - J

Sunlight streamed in through the windows that panelled across the right side of the bedroom, lighting up the room just enough to give it a warm haze that settled in the surrounding area.

The blinds from the previous night hadn’t been shut meaning that there was nothing stopping the beams of light from disturbing the couple that was sleeping fairly peacefully in the bed.

Out of the two of them, Clint was the first to wake up which was odd for him considering usually he wouldn’t even consider the idea of opening his eyes past noon but right now he didn’t have much of a choice as he was being blinded.

Groaning ever so slightly, he raised his hands to cover his face in a poor attempt to block out the light that was blurring his vision. 

Barton dropped his hand back to the sheets as he finally forced his eyes open, finally taking in the unfamiliar setting around him.

Furrowing his eyebrows slightly, he turned on his side only to see the back of a very naked Natasha.

With wide eyes, he parted his lips ever so slightly before a somewhat wicked grin began to spread over his face. It was at that moment that all the memories from the night before were slowly coming back to him.

Falling back onto the mattress, he tilted his head to the side spotting the hearing aids that he had taken out before sleeping.

Clint sat up a little in order to reach the purple hearing aids before carefully slotting them into each ear, he was somewhat impressed that he had actually remembered to take them out especially with his track record. 

The blonde was distracted from his own thoughts as the woman by his side began to stir ever so slightly meaning he could now bother her guilt-free as he knew she was waking up anyway. 

Turning over to his side, Clint shuffled over to her side of the bed before he wrapped his arms around her waist which allowed him to pull her closer while he nuzzled into the back of her neck.

“Well good morning, fancy seeing you here,” Clint muttered against her skin as he brushed his lips against her neck with a smile.

Natasha groaned as she felt arms pull her back a little, pulling her out of the sleep ridden state she had suddenly been wrenched out of.

A look of confusion suddenly crossed over her face as she began to realise that Clint was still here, in bed with her and hadn’t left during the night. Which for her was odd considering usually when she slept with someone they were always gone by the morning and if not she was the one to sneak away before they woke up. 

So to wake up having him not only still in her bed but was now pressed up against her, keeping her company in the early morning. It was an odd feeling if anything it was a foreign feeling but she didn’t seem to mind it in the slightest as his presence was somewhat comforting.

‘Good morning to you too, though I’m surprised your still here,’ She said with a small smile, shivering ever so slightly as she felt his lips ghost over her neck.

Laughter escaped the archer’s lips as he squeezed her waist ever so softly before letting out a content sigh. “Oh, I’m sorry I wasn’t aware my stay wasn’t welcome. I didn’t see a sign or anything so I assumed I could stay the night,” He said brushing his nose gently over her skin hoping that she wasn’t about to kick him out. 

Moving her hands down to where Clint’s were, she carefully placed them on top of his securing them in place before shuffling back to press against his chest with her back.

‘Mmph I didn’t say that I was just surprised that’s all. I’m happy you stayed, especially ‘cause you’re warm,’ She said with a yawn, feeling oddly content doing so little for once.

A smile turned up the corners of his mouth as she somewhat reciprocated his actions, which made him feel a little bolder about his own ones. “Wow is that all I am to you? Someone you use for sex and warmth?! Now that’s low … Even for you,” Clint teased as he scattered soft kisses against her neck.

Nat broke out into soft laughs as she craned her neck out of the way to pull it away from his lips as it was tickling her just a little. ‘You caught me alright! Now stop that I’m ticklish…’ She giggled as she tried to escape his grip.

A warm flutter sprung from his stomach as she giggled and tried to get away from him. That was a sound he didn’t hear very often and was now determined to make happen again.

“Oh is that so? Well, now it would be rude if I didn’t use that against you,” Clint said with a grin as he pulled her back causing her to fall flat on her back. 

Taking this to his advantage, Clint quickly pinned her down and instantly dove to her neck where he rapidly kissed every inch of her skin which caused Natasha to shriek before eventually fading out into laughter.

‘C-Clint! Stop! I’m ticklish there!’ She yelped in between giggles as she tried to push him off of her but he was far larger than she was. So instead she moved her hands up around her neck as she brushed her fingers through the back of his hair and tugged at it ever so slightly. 

Warmth spread through Clint’s chest as the sound of Natasha’s laughter filled her bedroom which only propelled him to tickle her more, not wanting her to stop laughing just yet.

This caused for Natasha to start kicking her legs as Clint was absolutely relentless with the tickling until she had tears pricking the corners of her eyes from how hard she had been laughing.

Eventually, he pulled back just far enough that he could look down at her face which was now all red from the laughter before smiling down at her.

“Fuck your beautiful,” Clint breathed out, a small smile lighting up his face as he gazed down at Natasha. Though he didn’t give her a chance to contest that as he leant down and softly kissed her lips, just wanting her to take the compliment without feeling the need to pass it off.

Smiling against his lips, she moved her hands from the back of his neck in order to cup both of his cheeks before softly reciprocating his kiss.

Nat could confidently say now that he was different, whatever they had was different to anything she had ever experienced before and was kicking herself that she had denied herself these good feelings for all those years. All that meant now was that they had a lot of time to make up for. 

Pulling back eventually, Clint smiled down at her before tilting his head slightly so he could kiss the palm of her hand. “I’m gonna wash up ok? I’ll be back in a sec,” He said with a smile before completely pulling back and let go of her waist so he could roll over to the other side of the bed. 

Huffing out a breath of air, Nat nodded before relaxing back into the bed as she turned around watching Clint clamber out of the bed and pulled on some boxers before disappearing to the bathroom.

Sighing softly, she turned her body around in the sheets feeling oddly light and not in a physical way. Almost as if she were riding on some sort of high.

Though it didn’t last very long as Clint yelled out from the bathroom. “What the fuck Nat?!” He called out which caused her to groan before she got up.

Swinging her legs over the side of the bed, she stood up from the bed before leaning down and slid on her underwear as well as Clint’s shirt from the night before as she walked towards the bathroom, carefully stepping over the clothes that had been carelessly tossed around the place.

Natasha stepped into the bathroom, only to see Clint stood in front of the mirror with his hands pressed against his sides as he stared at his reflection. ‘What are you whining about now?’ She mumbled, lifting her head to catch his gaze.

With his jaw hanging ajar, Clint lifted his hand from his hips in order to carefully brush his hand against his neck which was now absolutely covered in marks differing from bright red to a dark purple. She hadn’t held back in the slightest considering that the majority of the left side of his neck and upper chest was covered. 

“You are crazy! I mean just look at me, I’m like a painted whore!” Clint exclaimed with a pout as he tilted his head to the side to get a better look at the love bites she had left him.

The redhead couldn’t help but laugh at his dramatics as she approached his side and wrapped her arms around his waist. 

Standing on her tippy toes, she lifted her head before brushing her lips over the dark marks that she had previously left with a slight smirk. ‘What don’t you like my artwork?’ She purred against his neck, carefully drawing circles on the exposed area of his pelvis.

Clint allowed his eyes to flutter to a close for just a couple of seconds as he leaned into her touch ever so slightly before snapping his eyes open again. “Mmph it’s not that but more of the fact you couldn’t have made them any more visible. People are gonna ask questions and despite being a spy, I’m not very good at lying,” He huffed, slinging an arm around her waist watching her through their reflection.

Rolling her eyes slightly, she prodded him in the side. ‘Just don’t respond to their questions and it’s not like I have any so they can pin two and two together. You worry way too much Barton,’ She laughed.

“So what I’m hearing is to get back at you I should return the favour huh?” He said with a sly grin before tilting his head down so he could look at her.

Nat frowned before pulling back slightly knowing that he was going to act on his intentions if she wasn’t careful. ‘Nuh-uh, now that is gonna get us in trouble. And while I would love you to mark me up, the neck is not a viable option … though that doesn’t mean the rest of my body isn’t available. As long as my suit covers it up I’m all yours,’ She said with a smirk.

With the cock of his eyebrow, Clint looked down at her rather smugly. “Oh really? Well, then I’m going to enjoy this then.” He said as he took a couple of steps towards her but before he could get any close she lifted a hand and pressed a single finger against his lips.

‘But … Coffee first. I’ll be waiting on the bed for when you get back’ Natasha said with a slight smirk before leaning up and pressing a soft kiss against the side of his mouth to which she then turned around and headed back into her bedroom.

Clint didn’t even get a chance to object as she was already gone by the time he had processed what she had said. “Wha- C’monnnn that’s not fair,” He whined before walking back into the bedroom. Turning towards the bed, he watched as Natasha practically climbed back into bed and made herself comfortable before looking back at him with a smug look.

Sighing softly, he hung his head before searching around the ground looking for his jeans because he wasn’t going to go walk around the tower in just his boxers. He eventually found them hanging off the edge of her bed and pulled them on before turning to her.

“While I think my shirt looks much better on you than it does me, can I have it back?” He asked as his eyes glazed over the shirt that was practically slipping off her shoulders but still managed to cling to her body in all the right places.

Natasha pouted for a few seconds, taking her sweet time when it came to replying to him before eventually shaking her head. ‘Sorry, it’s my shirt now. Though I’ll take it off when you come back how about that?’ She said with a grin, looking up at him wondering how much she could get away with.

Grumbling under his breath, he glared down at her before just sighing and shrugging his shoulders. “Fine, good job I like you. Don’t play with me though, I’ma get coffee and come right back” He huffed, somewhat annoyed she was already parading him around but it was just coffee.

So with that, he turned his back on her and padded towards the elevator and selected the main living floor in which contained the coffee machine. All he could hope that the rest of the Avengers were still sleeping.

The elevator doors eventually pinged open as Clint carefully stuck his head out of the elevator and took a long look left and right before sighing as the coast was clear. In and out was all he had to do, quickly brew two cups of coffee and then get the hell out of there. It was a simple mission.

With that last thought, Clint quickly moved into the kitchen, heading straight for the coffee machine he was quick to grab two mugs and began to brew coffee.

Tapping the counter, Clint closed his eyes for a few seconds trying to be patient but if anything took longer than a minute he found his mind drifting, or at least that was until he got the shit scared out of him.

All of a sudden, someone behind him made themselves aware of their presence by clearing their throat which caused Clint to jump out of his skin.

Spinning on his heels, Clint took a deep breath as he was met with Tony leaning up against the island counter with an odd look. “Man, what the fuck you doin’ here?” Clint said with an exasperated sigh as he crossed his arms over his chest, a little conscious as he wasn’t wearing a shirt.

 _‘What am I doing here? Do you mean in my tower? Nice one Barton. I came to get coffee,’_ Tony said as he quirked an eyebrow in his direction. _‘Though by the looks of things someone had a good night. What did you get up to?_ ’ He questioned with a smirk as he caught a glimpse as his fairly bruised upper body.

Parting his lips ever so slightly, Clint felt his cheeks instantly get red as he quickly spun on his heels back to the coffee machine so Stark couldn’t read his facial expressions.”Pft I dunno what your on about. After you went to bed as did the rest of us. That’s just uh combat wound,” Clint said, speaking incredibly fast as he began to pour the coffee out into two mugs.

 _‘Right … Right sure. And those definitely are not scratches on your back then?’_ Tony said with a smirk, pretty much already knowing what had happened but he was going to torment him for as long as possible before revealing that.

Clint frowned as he glanced over his shoulders and tried to crane his neck at such an angle that he could just about see the red lines that stretched across the length of his back. “She’s crazy,” He muttered under his breath before shrugging his shoulders. “Guess not. Anyway I gotta go back to my bedroom, I need to shower so if you excuse me,” Clint said as he lifted both mugs of coffee up and stepped towards the door.

 _‘Wow, two cups? Just for you?’_ Tony questioned with a grin as his eyes followed the blonde as he walked across the kitchen.

“Yup I’m thirsty,” He said quickly before quickly turning left towards the elevator which caused Tony to yell out after him. _‘Your bedroom is the other way dumbass!’_

“What I can’t hear you sorry!” Clint exclaimed before quickly making his way into the elevator and slammed the button with his elbow glad that it didn’t seem that Tony was going to follow him.

It seemed that he either knew something or was at least somewhat suspicious which wasn’t a great start as right now the last thing they needed was attention on whatever this was that had suddenly blossomed between the two agents. 

A minute or so later, the elevator doors pinged back open onto Nat’s floor which allowed for Clint to take a couple of steps out and into her bedroom where she was comfortably sprawled over the bed.

“You better enjoy this dumb coffee because I just had the most stressful time of my life trying to acquire,” He announced as he approached the bed, carefully setting aside her mug before taking a long sip from his own one. 

Sitting up in her bed, Natasha lifted her head up and quickly grinned up at Clint. ‘Sounds like someone ran into some trouble, why what happened?’ She asked before leaning over to lift the cup of coffee he had brought her and took a sip of it.

Clint sat down on the edge of her bed begrudgingly as he took another drink from his mug. “Tony was up, much to my surprise and didn’t hold back when it came to asking questions. He was very suspicious, if not knowing. You don’t think he has cameras in here do you?” He said snapping his head up in order to stare at the corner of the ceiling which only caused for Nat to laugh at him.

‘Oh come on, don’t be stupid. I guess he was just paying a little more attention than usual, I mean it wasn’t like you were trying to hide your blatant flirting attempts,’ She said with a grin as she brought her knees up to her chest while taking another sip of her drink before eventually setting it aside. 

‘But thank you for the coffee, I think that means it’s time for us to get even,’ She said with a playful smile as she grabbed his arm and fell back onto the bed, gesturing for him to follow her lead. 

With the quirk of his eyebrow, he quickly put his half-drunk mug to the side as he happily followed her back down to the mattress. Sliding his legs either side to her waist, he leant over her in order to meet her lips with his own in a somewhat chaste kiss all while Natashas hands slid under his arms and wrapped around his back.

Pulling back from her lips, he brushed his fingers underneath her shirt and up against her bare skin. “Your right, my shirt looks better on you,”


	12. I don’t plan on dying just yet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things are going fairly well with Nat and Clint ... Until they aren't.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyooooo back at it again with another chapter. My brain was a bit fuzzy with chapter but I wanted all these elements to come together eventually so here we are lmao. Anyways I'm getting excited with every chapter I'm posting haha so please enjoy! - J

A week had passed since the two agents had finally done something about the sexual tension that had been building up between them in the last five years and things couldn’t be better. For the most part, things were pretty much the same as they had always been. 

Natasha and Clint were still spending most of their time bickering with one another with the only difference being that there was a chance for their flirting to escalate into something more physical, which eight times out of ten it did.

Everything was pretty good for the most part, besides the fact that neither of them had taken the liberty in deciding to try and talk about whatever this was between them or god forbid their emotions. 

Every time that Clint even tried to bring up the subject of a possible relationship or tried to sit her down for a conversation, Natasha would do one of two things.

She would either completely avoid the subject and cut their conversation short by her pretty much just storming off or she would do the complete opposite by seducing him and completely making him forget about what they were talking about. It got to the point where he had just given up in hopes that eventually she would take it upon herself to bring it up.

So rather than spending their time actually talking about things, the two agents were found sparring in one of the spare training rooms. If they wouldn’t talk about their feelings they might as well take it out on each other.

“You going easy on me Romanoff?” Clint panted with a lazy grin as he easily dodged out of the way of a punch she threw in his direction. They had only been going at it for a couple of minutes but he had already broken out into a sweat.

A smirk crossed the redheads face as she shrugged her shoulders, her eyes flickering up and down her opponent in order to assess what he would do not. ‘Of course, I am, what do you want me to kick your ass?’ She asked with a grin.

Clint huffed out a breath of air before rolling her eyes. “You? Kick my ass? I don’t think so. Gimmie a challenge,” He said with a grin as he closed the space that was in between them before swinging his leg at hers.

‘Alright, challenge accepted,’ She muttered under her breath. Natasha could see his moves coming from a mile away, so when his leg got close enough she simply just jumped over it before carefully landing back on her two feet. 

While Clint was still recovering his balance from his kick, she took this opportunity to raise herself up and quickly extend her leg upwards until it reached his chest. Driving her heel into his chest, he stumbled a couple of steps backwards giving her the chance to practically launch herself into the air.

Once she reached high enough, she quickly raised her leg high enough to wrap her leg around his neck. Using her own body weight, she swung him towards the floor leaving her practicality on top of him as she slowly began to squeeze the life out of him with her thighs.

‘I mean I know you like being clamped between my thighs but I doubt this was what you had in mind,’ Natasha said with a smirk, watching as his face slowly began to get red as he basically couldn’t breathe.

Eventually, he aggressively tapped at her outer thigh wanting to breathe to which she complied as she loosened her legs ever so slightly. 

Clint took advantage of that as he grabbed either side of her thighs before throwing himself upward and slammed her into the mat beneath them as he broke free of the headlock that she had on him. 

“Not bad, not bad but I’m just too good for that kinda thing. You were right about the first bit,” He said with a grin as he was now on top of her.

Though that grin was quickly wiped off of his face as his weight shifted under him, as Nat kicked her legs out from under him as she used his body weight to swap positions.

Shifting herself on top of him, she straddled his hips making use of her thighs to make sure that his legs wouldn’t be kicking all over the place.

As soon as she was on top of him properly, her hands instantly went to wrap around his wrists pinning him down against the floor as he was already trying to get back up.

‘Oh, I’m sorry? You were saying about me not being able to kick your ass?’ Natasha questioned in a fairly innocent voice as she looked down at him with a cunning smirk.

Clint looked up at Natasha, her red locks cascading in front of her face as she leant over him. Somehow she had managed to completely turn things around causing for him to be basically trapped. 

“Yeah, yeah. I let you win,” He huffed out as he tried to move his wrists but she was using her body weight against him and in a position like this it was pretty effective despite the fact she didn’t weigh very much.

However, it was only now that his brain was connecting the dots in the way she was on top of him and pinning him down. A small smirk crossed his lips as he tilted his head to the side ever so slightly.

“Now then, this is an awfully familiar position wouldn’t you say?” He said as he quirked up an eyebrow to her.

Laughter escaped Natasha lips at the comment as her gaze met his. ‘Mm you could say that but you’ve got an awfully dirty mind, Barton,’ She muttered before slowly but surely leaning down over him, connecting their lips in a kiss.

Smirking against her lips, he pulled back ever so slightly. “I mean you did choke me out with your thighs and that’s kinda hot,” He muttered before pressing their lips together once again.

There was a chance that they could get caught considering that they were in a very busy government facility but there was something about the idea of getting caught which was what gave a certain thrill.

Groaning against her lips, he bit down on her lower lip knowing that they probably wouldn’t get the chance to go all the way so was making the most of his limited actions.

Things were quickly heating up as Natasha was all over Clint, not having much regard for the fact that they were in a public space. It was rare that they got time alone with one another so when the opportunity arose they grabbed the opportunity by the horns and went for it.

Though just as soon as things were going to get interesting with Natasha’s hand hovering over Clint’s belt, the door rattled insinuated that someone was about to come in.

In an instant, Natashas hand returned to her side as she broke their kiss before leaping upwards in a flustered state as she watched two younger female agents enter the sparring room.

Clint, on the other hand, scrambled to his feet before running his hand through his hair, his face and upper body very flustered from their previous actives as he awkwardly cleared his throat.

“Uhm we were uh just sparring. But we’re done now so uh feel free to use the room for your fighting purposes,” Clint said, over-explaining something that was fairly self-explanatory which caused the agents to break out into giggles.

It was only now that Clint recognised these agents, in the most obvious way possible it was clear that they sorta had a thing for him. And while he really only had eyes for a certain redhead, an idea popped into his head.

If she wasn’t going to be willing to face him and have a proper conversation about the two of them, then he was going to see if he could make her jealous enough there might be a chance that she would actually want to have a proper conversation with him.

Now with that thought in mind, he cleared his throat before flattening the fabric of his shirt as he walked over towards the door.

“So ladies, what are you two doing here?” Clint said with a small smile, which already earnt him a dirty look from Natasha as she carefully stepped behind him wondering where he was going with this.

The two agents giggled softly as they shared a knowing look with one another before they eventually piped up. 

_‘Well, we were gonna work out but it seemed like we were interrupting something’_ She said, looking past Clint and at Natasha before smiling.

“Oh, interrupting? No, don’t be silly she’s just my work partner, getting in that daily spar y’know gotta keep active. But you guys on the other hand already look great,” Clint said with a flirty smile which caused her to giggle over towards her friend.

Natasha, on the other hand, wasn’t impressed in the slightest as she watched the man who she had literally been all over not a minute ago flirting with two other women that he barely even knew. Jealous didn’t even begin to describe her current emotions.

_‘Oh stop it! You are far too flattering’_ One of the agents said as she shot a smile up to him.

“I mean what can I say, I know beauty when I see it,” Clint said with the shrug of his shoulders in a very nonchalant way as he reached over and carefully patted her shoulder.

It seemed like that had just pushed her over the edge as Natasha glared at the two women before grabbing Clint by the wrist and aggressively tugged him out of the room.

Not giving him the chance to say anything else, she quickly pulled him out of the sparring room and into one of the janitors closet slamming the door behind them as soon as they were both inside.

‘What the fuck was that Barton? Do I mean nothing to you,’ She spat as she shoved him against the door, fury in her eyes.

Clint had been expecting to get a reaction out of Natasha however he hadn’t been expecting one of this proportion so he just went along with wherever she was taking him until they were face to face in a closet.

Narrowing his eyes down at her, he scoffed before shaking his head. “Alright, so you are jealous huh?” Clint said back, looking down at her with a serious look.

A look of confusion crossed her face as she tried to read him, confused as to what he was trying to do. ‘What do you mean? Of course, I’m fucking jealous Clint you just stood there and flirted with two women not even a minute after we- I just thought I meant something to you, Clint,’ She said her anger slowly fading out into something softer and vulnerable.

“Nat…” Clint said in a soft tone as the look on her face changed something in him as well, making him feel slightly guilty already. “Of course you mean something to me, you mean everything to me and you know that. All I was trying to do was get a reaction out of you, which as it stands clearly worked because we need to talk about us. About our feelings whether you want to or not. I can’t believe I’m the one saying this to you but we’re adults Tasha, we need to make things clear for things to go forward,” Barton said, looking at her as he tried to catch her gaze with his own. 

His words instantly shut any doors of vulnerability she had once opened as soon as she understood what the point of his actions had been for. ‘Right of course. Of course, that’s what this is all about. You can’t go five minutes without freaking out the second someone shows you any sort of affection,’ She scoffed as she took a step back and crossed her arms over her chest.

“Wow. That’s rich coming from you. In the past week alone I have been trying to just simply talk about us so we can get on the same page before anything goes any further but you’re not having it. What are you afraid of Nat? We’ve already done the hard part,” He said with a soft tone, stepping forwards to reach out and place his hand on her shoulder.

Feeling his hand on her shoulder, she quickly shrugged it off before turning around to look at him. ‘I can’t believe you, Barton. Can’t we just enjoy something without having to ruin it?! Whatever I’m over this. When you decide to stop being such a baby about things come and find me,’ She scoffed before pushing past him, leaving through the door. 

Clint didn’t even get the chance to further argue with her because as soon as any words came to mind she was already gone.

Huffing out a breath of air he rubbed his face. “That woman is crazy. All I wanted was to talk and she turns it into a shouting fest. Typical,” He grumbled under his breath before stepping out of the closet. It was going to be one hell of a day.

* * *

The rest of the day panned out a slowly as humanly possible. Neither Nat nor Clint had spoken to one another since they had separated from the closet, refusing to be the first person to give in.

It had gotten to the point where if they even saw the other in the same hallway, they would both stare at each other and stop in their tracks before turning around and going in the opposite direction.

Was it petty? Of course, it was. But did either of them care? Hell no. They but they both wanted to ‘win’ this argument so they were going to do whatever they could to avoid one another.

Or at least that was until they were both ordered to respond to a call in the city as they needed some so-called ‘professionals’ on the job.

Begrudgingly, Clint walked into the preparation only to see that Natasha was already there getting changed into her mission suit taking no notice of him as he entered.

Rolling his eyes, Clint stepped to the side and opened up his locket and grabbed his suit before stripping down and started to get changed. “Don’t worry I’m not going to say anything because you’ve made it abundantly clear that a conversation is just taking things way too far,” He said, glancing over his shoulder but Nat didn’t even acknowledge what he said.

“Be like that then. Oh, it’s going to be so fun working with you,” He mumbled as he pulled his shirt on turning towards Natasha who was now leaning up against the wall watching him change with her arms crossed over her chest.

Tilting his head to the side he gave her an odd look as he pulled down his shirt.

‘What? I can be pissed at you and still admire the view. Now come on,’ Nat said with the roll of her eyes before walking out of the door and towards the armoured car that was waiting for them.

Huffing out a breath, Clint grabbed his bow and slung his quiver over his shoulder before jogging after her and climbing into the car. According to their superiors, there were reports of a big arms deal going on and the two agents were their best shot and handling it without causing too much damage. 

At least that was the plan, there was only one way to find out.

Clint and Natasha were driven into the centre of New York, only stopping until they were a couple of blocks away from the alley that was supposed to hold this illegal meeting.

The two covered the rest of the distance on foot until they got close enough to assess the scene.

By the looks of things, there were at least six people and one van that had been packed full of all sorts of weapons. One thing that was for sure was that this meeting was very illegal and one wrong move and the two of them would be shot to pieces in an instant meaning that they were going to have to work together.

‘Alright, if you distract from this entrance - maybe put a couple of arrows in some of them and I’ll scale the building. Drop behind them and deal damage that way. You understand?’ Natasha question, grabbing Clint’s arm to stop him from running ahead just yet.

Stopping in his tracks Clint looked at her and shrugged his shoulders. “Whatever you say, seeing as there’s no point in asking for anything else,” Clint said with a smug look which only caused for her to glare at him before letting go of his arm.

“Ok then. I shall go do my job. Just remember, don’t let your emotions get in the way of things. I’d hate for us to have a real conversation,” He said with a pout, making sure that she was going to hate every moment of this. If she was going to be difficult then so was he.

‘Shut up and do your job,’ She said with the roll of her eyes before turning her back on him and began to climb up the side of the building.

“Yes ma’am,” He mumbled under his breath as he slung his bow from his shoulder and into his hands before slotting an arrow in it. Peering around the corner he assesses who would be best to take out first and by the looks of things, it was the guy closest to the van.

All eyes were currently on him meaning that as soon as he landed his first shot it would be extremely likely that they would try and figure out where the arrow had been fired at which would cause for all eyes to turn to him, giving Nat the opportunity to strike from behind.

And that was exactly what he did, however, things didn’t exactly go to plan as he hit his target but they responded a little differently to how he was imagining things.

As soon as his arrow made contact with his target, they all reached for their guns and the majority span around in his direction with their weapons raised but a few of them went over to assist the man that had gotten shot.

“Shit,” Clint grumbled under his breath as he sprung from out of his cover and let another arrow fly, though this time he hit one of the back tires meaning that if they attempted to escape they would be fucked.

“What’s up dick wads? Heard some illegal stuff is going down, you guys know that’s not allowed?” He yelled, doing his best to draw all their attention on him which seeming worked as the next thing he knew he was being berated by the sea of bullets causing for him to dive out the way.

Clint crawled back to the side of the building and pressed his back up against the wall before glancing up only to see that Nat was nowhere to be seen. “Shit. Come on Nat, any time now would be helpful” He grumbled under his breath while he got back onto his feet.

And just like that, he heard some muffled screams come from around the corner meaning that his prayers had been answered.

Peering around the corner he noted that two were already on the ground and Natasha was already taking a third one down, meaning that he was late to the party.

“Oh come on leave some for me,” He muttered as he grabbed another arrow and nocked it into his bow before letting it slice through the air.

By the looks of things, the majority of the dealers had already been dealt with, making Clint feeling a little useless in the current situation. “Took your time huh?” He said, narrowing his eyes in Nat’s direction before reaching down and yanking an arrow out of one of the men.

‘Stop whining, we got it done didn’t we?’ She said with a slight smirk as she cracked her neck.

“Well uh yeah but still! I could’ve gotten shot, you’re lucky that I didn’t,” He grumbled as he rubbed the back of his neck.

‘You are such a big baby hones-’ She began until she noticed some minuscule movement behind him. Without hesitating another second, she closed the space between them and tackled him to the floor as a shot rang through the air.

The two tumbled to the ground in an attempt to avoid getting hit before Clint quickly scrambled aside and kicked the gun out of the dealer’s hand before quickly delivering a swift kick to his head.

“Man what the fuck, these guys are craz-” He began to say before turning over to see that Nat was still on the ground.

“Nat, Nat are you okay?” Clint said, panic laced in his voice as he carefully helped her sit up as his hand went up to cup her cheek.

During the process of tackling him the ground she had managed to get grazed by the bullet, it was nothing serious but the shock of actually being hit was taking her a little while to process.

Slowly but surely she nodded, looking up at him she tried to sit up but winced ever so slightly. ‘Yeah don’t worry, I think I just got grazed or something’ She mumbled pulling away from his touch.

“Woah take it easy, what do you mean grazed? Are you an idiot? Jumping like that,” He muttered as he looked to see where she had been hit in the abdomen, it was nothing too bad but it had caused her to bleed just a little.

Natasha pushed herself up into a standing position carefully before glaring down at Clint. ‘I knew what I was doing Clint, besides you’re welcome. Our rides here,’ She said as she placed her hand over where she had been shot before walking towards the car that had pulled up in front of the alley.

There would be more agents, later on, to deal with the aftermath but their job was now done.

Clint watched her as she stood up like sacrificing herself for him was nothing, of course, he would have done the exact same thing for her but that wasn’t the point. 

A spark of anger lit inside of him as she had such a disregard for her own life. She could have died and seemingly she couldn’t have cared any less.

Nonetheless, Clint got up and followed her into the car but didn’t utter a word to her. When they had some sort of privacy he was going to break up this ridiculous feud that they had managed to wedge between themselves.

* * *

The ride back to base was incredibly awkward as neither Nat nor Clint uttered a single word, leaving the car with an eerie atmosphere.

It was only until they had exited the car that Clint sped walked behind her in order to spark a conversation between them.

“What the hell was that Nat?” He said as he grabbed her wrist in order to get her to stop and look at him.

Furrowing her eyebrows she snatched her arm back with a glare. ‘You mean saving your life? Get over it, Barton. I thought you weren’t talking to me anyway because you were being a big baby about everything,’ She said with a clenched jaw.

“I think this is a little more important than a petty argument Nat. It’s not about you saving my life it’s about how you could have lost yours just like that. You can’t die on me, not like that,” He said raising his voice, the anger from before slowly seeping out.

‘Are you being serious right now?!’ She exclaimed, looking at him with a mixture of confusion which grabbed the attention of some of the surrounding agents. Here wasn’t the place to have this conversation, so she grabbed his hand and pulled him into the closet room, which just so happened the same one as earlier.

“Of course I’m being serious Natasha. But you got hit today. You don’t get him, no that’s my job. You have to be safe because I need you. I need you to watch my back Nat,” Clint exclaimed as soon as the door shut behind them, getting close to yelling at this point as emotions flowed through every word.

‘Shut up. SHUT UP CLINT! Do you know how dumb you sound right now?! I get to risk my life just as much as you do, no matter how you feel about it.’ She yelled as she balled up a fist and hit him against the chest for emphasis. ‘I care about you dumbass’ She said softly this time, her voice breaking slightly as she looked up at him.

The sudden change in Nat caused Clint to shut up in an instant as his gaze met hers. Sighing softly, his eyes fluttered closed for a brief second allowing his emotions to sink in for a couple of seconds before speaking.

“Tasha…” He said softly as he opened his eyes again only to be met with her piercing green ones. “C’mere,” Clint said, not being able to continue this scream fest.

Without another word he closed the space between them, wrapping his arms around her he pulled her into a tight hug. His hand rested on her lower back while his other hand went to go against the side of her head as he gently brushed his fingers through her hair.

Natasha didn’t even resist when he came over to hug her, something that she would usually reject but right now it was exactly what she needed. Especially from him.

As soon as his arms clasped around her, she melted into his touch. Her head rested against his chest, just above his heart, as her arms slung around his waist just enjoying his company.

“I’m sorry…” He said after a couple of seconds as he pressed a soft kiss against her forehead, his thumb carefully brushing against her cheek in an affectionate way.

Lifting up her head, their gaze met once again as her lips turned into a smile. Moving one of her hands, she snaked it up to cup his cheek as she shook her head.

“No, no listen to me. I’m sorry, I really am. I shouldn’t have pushed you into something that you clearly aren’t ready to talk about and that’s ok. I just don’t want to mess this up,” He said softly, smiling down at her.

‘While it’s nice to hear you apologise you still had a point, I just didn’t want to admit it. I’m scared Clint. Relationships scare me but I want it. I want it bad so maybe it’s worth a shot,” She said with a smile, moving her hand so she could run her fingers through his blonde strands.

Quirking an eyebrow down at her, the smile on his face gradually began to grow as he realised that she was being serious and that this wasn’t some crazy, sick joke that she was playing on him. 

“Seriously? Well, that’s one hell of a change of thought but if you want to try it then I’m not gonna get in the way. How about we start simple. A date? Saturday, seven PM and meet at my place?” Clint said, already getting ahead of himself but he didn’t care. She couldn’t take those words back now so he was going to take advantage of that. 

Nat laughed as she nodded up at him, his excitement wasn’t something that he could hide from her. ‘Yeah seriously, sounds like a plan to me. I expect the best of the best though,’ She said with a smirk before standing on her tippy toes.

Lifting her head, she closed her eyes as she leant up towards him and pressed a soft kiss against his lips. ‘But if you yell at me again, I will kill you,’ She whispered with a wink before kissing him again.

That sentence alone caused Clint to frown slightly but there was no way he was going to argue with her, especially after everything that she had just agreed to.

Eventually, Nat broke back from the kiss and his touch as she took a look at her side. ‘Now can I go to the med bay? I don’t plan on dying just yet,’


	13. Clint Barton, my dumb boyfriend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clint and Nat have their first date, though seemingly the two misunderstood the other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyo! Now this is a tad late, unexpected circumstances meant that I didn't have time last night to finish this one meaning is it the best? No but I still wanted to include this chapter because I'm my mind it just has to exist for the story to go along. Its cute and I had fun so please enjoy! - J

Saturday couldn’t have taken any longer to arrive. The week seemed to last a month as every day took it’s sweet sweet time to come to an end.

It didn’t exactly help that S.H.I.E.L.D. was worryingly quiet, meaning the majority of the time both Natasha and Clint spent their time either with paperwork or basic patrols, though oddly enough for New York City it was lacking a great deal of crime.

Who knew, bad guys had their off weeks which meant that the good guys … to do what they did best. Which was sit around and do nothing, something that Clint was awfully fond of. Or at least he usually was when he wasn’t forced to spend time with his best friend.

Which in normal circumstances would be just fine but as they had planned to try and take things a little slow and try for a date it meant that they had agreed to keep things as normal as possible.

Meaning no sex, no flirting yada yada that whole ordeal which was more difficult than either had anticipated. Especially with there being a lack of work to do, they had to fill their time somehow however sadly all of Clint’s advancing were quickly shut down by Natasha.

Seemingly Natasha was much more strong-willed than Clint was, which sucked in his opinion but it was probably for the best. Keep things cool for the big date, even though he was trying to convince himself it wasn’t a big deal - it really was.

And maybe that was why the week was dragging on for so long. It was either that or the lack of work that they had that sucked because the one time they got to lounge around and do nothing they had to act like nothing was up.

So when Saturday eventually rolled around, Clint couldn’t be any more excited.

The blonde had even woke up especially early in order to sort his apartment out because it was an absolute mess, the last time he had cleaned was probably when he first bought the apartment and that was only because he had no other choice thanks to a mould infestation. 

Though for the first time in his life he had someone to impress and he was not going to blow his shot. Sure Nat had been to his place before in passing, though he never gave her enough of a chance to properly inspect the place because if he did there was a pretty high chance that she would go running the other way.

With that thought, Barton jumped right into the action. First things first were to get rid of all the garbage that was littered around the place, which mostly just consisted of soda cans and pizza boxes, he wasn’t much of a cook.

Once the general vicinity of the apartment was cleared it was time to move onto his bedroom, if things went to plan hopefully she would be staying the night but nothing turned someone off like ha messy bedroom. He very much doubted that she was willing to sleep on a bed that was covered in crumbs.

So with that in mind, he was oddly motivated to quickly sweep over his bedroom in no time. Leaving him with an unsettling spotless room, well as spotless as you could consider a cramped bedroom that had been filled to the brim with all sorts of commodities.

Some might compare his bedroom to that of a child’s, which wouldn’t be completely that far off of things but he didn’t really care.

Clint didn’t really get to have a real childhood, with his mother passing at a young age and his dad being a drunk abuser - he and his brother didn’t really have the chance to be normal kids.

With that in mind, it was fairly reasonable for him to now like and indulge in all the things he had been denied as a kid guilt-free. Also, the fact he didn’t give a flying fuck about anyone else’s opinion - besides Nat of course. But he doubted she would make real fun of him, maybe tease him here and there but she wasn’t evil.

Barton snapped out of his daydream with a small smile, his gazing following the line of posters that were plastered up against the wall before his eyes settling on a couple of different photo frames that were scattered around the room.

He only had three, surprisingly he didn’t have many people to put up in photo frames but in a way that just made the ones he already had even more special.

The first one was set above his draws and it was taken after the battle of New York in the shawarma shop, much to the rest of the Avengers amusement, where he got the owner to take a picture of the exhausted heroes over their food but it made for a pretty nice picture. Despite the fact he was the only one smiling, he still kept it up as a nice reminder.

The second one was him and his older brother Barney, though it had been taken when both men were much younger and in their teens. He hadn’t seen Barney in god knows how long he had seen him, that was somewhat of a touchy subject for him.

Then the final one of course was the one on his bedside table, which was him and Nat from the very early S.H.I.E.L.D. days. He was pretty sure she had already seen it the last time she dropped by but he couldn’t be sure, there was a chance she hadn’t and if so was it weird that he had a picture of her? It was the both of them so it wasn’t that weird. That was his logic so he ended up just leaving it there. Worst came to worst he could just throw it under his bed.

A small smile crossed his lips as he glanced over all three pictures, he had a date to get ready for and here he was getting all emotional over pictures.

Scoffing slightly, he rubbed the back of his neck laughing at himself ever so slightly. Turning to his draws, he quickly searched through them looking for something to wear.

He wanted something that was pretty casual but not like sweatpant gym casual. Eventually, he settled on some worn jeans, his favourite t-shirt and a plaid shirt. Nothing wrong with his go-to outfit, he looked good and he wasn’t afraid to admit that.

With the apartment now clean and with him fully dressed all he had to do was sit around and wait for Natasha to arrive, which shouldn’t be long. At least that was if she was on time.

Walking into the living room, he took a seat on the couch which caused Lucky to come running over to him as he launched into his lab.

“Awh hah, hey buddy. You excited too huh?” Clint said with a smile as he rubbed either side of the dogs head before leaning over to kiss the top of his head. Lucky barked happily at his touched as he panted, clearly loving all the attention that he was getting.

“I’m looking forward to seeing her too, though we gotta play it cool right? I know how exciting this is but we gotta make an impression. This is the first date, can’t mess it up alright?” He said through his fur as he continued to kiss the top of his head.

Lifting his head up in his hands, he smiled down at Lucky before shaking his head. “Man I love you, we got this,” He mumbled before being rudely interrupted by a knock at the door.

“Shit, she’s here. Alright, play cool Clint you got this,” He grumbled to himself as Lucky jumped out of his lap in order to bark at the door.

Standing up, Clint flattened his shirt before walking towards the door. “Calm down buddy, it’s just Nat,” Clint said, trying to calm the barking dog but he seemed to be having none of it as he went to open the door.

“Buddy calm down, don’t worry it’s just Tas-” He started as he opened the door, holding Lucky back as he lifted his head until his eyes were greeted with Natasha who took his breath away quite literally.

“-ah…..” Clint finished his sentence as his jaw dropped. His eyes swept up and down her body as she was wearing this glamorous red dress that highlighted her body in just the right way. Not to mention how she had curled her hair so it just about brushed over her shoulders or how her lipstick somehow matched both her dress and hair in colour.

‘Clint-on. You alright there?’ She questioned with a small smile, tilting her head to the side only now realising that she was a little more dressed up than he was.

Swallowing thickly, he blinked a couple of times not realising that he had just been gawking at her the whole time. “Shit no yeah I’m good you just look … Amazing. Fuck I think I’m a little underdressed,” He said as he opened the door fully revealing his casual outfit. 

‘No, no don’t worry I uh think I misunderstood what you meant. You did say date right? I thought we were gonna get dinner or something?’ Natasha said as her eyes raked down his body, fearing that she was definitely overdressed.

“Oh crap. Yeah no I meant date! But I was thinking a little more us? I was gonna make dinner, I didn’t think you were into that fancy stuff so I wanted to make it more personal but if you want I’m sure there’s a restaurant down the street and-” He started to ramble but was quickly interrupted as Nat stepped forward and pressed a finger against his lips getting him to shut up.

Natasha smiled up at him as she shook her head. ‘Don’t be stupid, it’s very cute that you wanna make it personal. I want you to cook for me. Come on let’s go inside,’ She said with another smile as she grabbed his hand and stepped into his apartment.

Feeling his cheeks flush red, he watched as she stepped inside the apartment before shutting the door behind him. “Well alright, though gimmie one second alright. I can’t have you looking like that all night when I look like this. I’ll be back!” He exclaimed as he jogged into his bedroom.

‘Alright if you say so,’ She said with a smile, watching him run off before turning to Lucky. ‘You have one crazy dad you know that?’ Nat chuckled as she leant over, stroking the dog.

Glancing around the place she frowned, there was a scary lack of mess in here. Had he seriously cleaned the place just for her?

She didn’t even get the chance to answer her own question as she heard footprints coming back insinuating that Clint was coming back.

Standing upright, she turned around only to see Clint wearing only half a suit. He was wearing a shirt and tie but was still wearing jeans.

“Alright before you laugh I didn’t want you to feel singled out so I decided to dress up. But there was a slight issue, the main one being that I couldn’t find my pants. So here you have it, half casual half formal,” Clint said as he stopped in front of her waving his hands over his body.

Lifting a hand over her mouth, she tried her hardest to not laugh but she ended up letting out a giggle because he looked downright ridiculous. ‘Nice one Barton, your cute,’ She said with a smile, dropping her hands down to her side.

“Right, right soooo now that’s out of the way. Please take a seat at my embarrassingly small table. Be prepared for the most fanciest meal you could ever imagine … Spaghetti,” Clint said with a grin as he directed to the small table that was tucked away in the corner.  
‘Oh my, you really are pulling out all the stops for me. First, you clean up, then you dress up and then you cook me spaghetti? Damn Barton, first impression made,’ She said with a grin before taking a seat.

Rolling up his sleeves, Clint wandered into the kitchen with his hands on his hips before turning around to take another look at her. “You have no right looking that pretty. Fuck I mean come on,” He said with the shake of his head.

Laughter escaped her lips as she rolled her eyes, leaning forward on both of her arms before propping up her head with her hands. ‘Careful, don’t waste all your compliments in the first five minutes. Pretty and hot will only get you so far. Now chop to it, I’m hungry and was promised dinner,’ She said with a smile.

“For your information, I have more than like two compliments … I’m just not gonna reveal them just yet. And alright, though your only entertainment is going to be me cooking so I hope you are prepared with an evening filled with fun,” He said with a grin before turning his back on her in order to get started with dinner.

A smile lit up her face as she shook her head, watching him cook was going to be more than enough entertainment for her.

Surprisingly enough, cooking dinner went pretty well. Though it was pretty hard to mess up so if he managed that it would be a feat and a half.

It wasn’t long until Clint was walking out of the kitchen with two plates of spaghetti that he had piled high. Setting the plates down, he took a seat next to Nat.

“Alrighty, please dig in. I expect at least a twenty-dollar tip so I hope you’re ready for that,” He said with a grin before picking up his fork and dug into his pasta.

Natasha pulled her plate closer towards her as she frowned at him. ‘Yeah right, I’m not giving you any money. After all, you did mislead me,” She said with a smirk as she picked up a fork and began to dig in.

Narrowing his eyes in her direction, he quickly shook his head as he shovelled another mouthful of pasta into his mouth. “Oh come on! Are you really gonna play that card? Like you really wanted to spend the evening being all fancy, drinking wine that you swirled around in your glass for some reason? No, I promised you in Russia that I was going to cook for you and here we are!” He said, not caring that he still had a mouthful of food.

‘Gross, Clint at least finish your mouthful before speaking. And alright I guess you did promise that…’ She said as she twirled pasta around her fork before looking up at him. ‘It’s not half bad, especially for a man who claims he can’t cook’ Nat said with a small smile.

“Well I mean if you wanna call me a cook I’m not going to object but don’t expect anything fancy. This is about as far as my culinary skills go, putting pasta in hot water and mixing in the premade sauce. I know I should open up a restaurant or something,” He said with a grin before polishing off the rest of his plate.

‘Wow get you a man who can cook and somehow pull off jeans with a suit,’ She said as she leaned around the table, catching a sneak peek of his jean-suit combo. ‘You should wear it more often, you look good,’ She said with a wink as she set down her fork.

Huffing air out of his mouth, Clint sat back in his chair as he crossed his arms over his chest. “I mean if you plan on dressing up like this again, I’m sure I could wrangle something together. Did I mention how good you look this evening?” He questioned with a grin before raising from his seat in order to collect the dirty plates and carry them into the kitchen.

‘Oh, I dunno. Maybe a couple of times?’ She said with a grin as she stood up and walked over to the islands that separated the living area from the kitchen and leant over it, watching as he carried the plates to the sink.

Glancing over his shoulder, Clint pouted as he saw that Natasha was patiently waiting for him to hurry up. “Oh yeah don’t worry. I’ve got it. You just sit back and look pretty,” He said as he rolled his eyes with a smile before starting to fill the sink up with hot water.

‘Don’t worry, that’s exactly what I was planning on doing. Please continue, this is quite amusing actually,’ She said smirking at him.

“Already turning me into a housewife I see, that’s fine I guess but don’t worry I got this one,” He scoffed as he turned to the sink, noting that he had his radio turned on and it was playing some absolute hit.

“Fuck yeah I love this song,” Clint said as he reached forward and turned it up before starting to subtly dance. Though as the song progressed into the main chorus his dance moves got more and more deliberate until he was practically doing a whole dance recital. “Nat come here and dance with me,” He said as he spun on his heels and gestured for her to come over to him.

‘Nope, I don’t dance Barton. You should know this,’ She scoffed as she shook her head, straightening up before crossing her arms over her chest.

“Romanoff. Get your ass in my kitchen and dance with me. It’s the least you can do for me,” He said as he held out his hand in her direction before narrowing his eyes. Clint was not going to be taking no for an answer. 

Groaning, Natasha returned the glare before shrugging her shoulders and walked around the island in order to take Clint’s hand. ‘Alright fine, just this one song though,’

Squeezing her hand, he smiled as he lifted her hand up and forced her into a twirl before stepping closer and placing a hand on her waist. “Oh come on you know you love to dance, don’t deny it!” He exclaimed as he bounced from one foot to the other.

Natasha smiled up at him with a quick roll of the eyes as she placed her free hand on his waist. ‘I do like to dance but this is a little fast-paced for me. Something slower and more acoustic is more my style but I like to first hand experience your incredibly clunky dance moves,’ She said with a grin, moving with his body despite that he was missing the beat.

“Oh come on now there is no need to be rude. I am not clunky. I’ll have you know I’m one of the best dancers I know so hah,” He said as he stuck his tongue out at her. “It’s a good job I like you,” He grumbled with narrowed eyes.

She laughed and tilted her head backwards at Clint’s overdramatisation of his lack of dance skills. ‘You are such a baby! I get over to dance with you and all I get as thanks is a bunch of snarky comments. My god,’ Nat teased with a grin as she looked up at him.

Pouting down at her, Clint rolled his eyes before laughing at her. “My bad, my bad I’ll thank you properly,” He muttered as he leant down in order to gently kiss her.

Humming against his lips, she smiled as she tilted her head upwards. As she was wearing heels she didn’t have to go on her tippy toes in order to kiss him without breaking her neck in the process.

Nat eventually pulled back so she could make eye contact with him, all while letting go of his hand so she could cup his cheek. ‘I missed you this week, though definitely worth the wait,’ She said with a smile, brushing her thumb along his cheek in an adoring way.

“Really? Well, it really didn’t feel like it. I mean come on there was so much time we could have spent together but nope. Had to wait until now, makes complete sense to me. You know how many good hiding spots I found, there is a surprising amount of cupboards that have locks,” Clint said with a grin as he wiggled his eyebrows in a suggestive manner.

Huffing out a breath of air, she laughed at him. ‘My god and you call me the dramatic one? It was one week Clint, get over yourself. Anyways, I promise to make it up to you later though’ She said with a wink before letting go of his hand in order to grab his tie to pull his face closer to hers.

Clint quirked up an eyebrow at her offer as a smile took over the lower portion of his face. “Oh is that so? I mean if that’s the case maybe we should move onto the next part of our date?” He questioned, not exactly waiting for an answer as he leant down and kissed her.

Grinning against his lips, she reciprocated the kiss as she pulled on his tie a litter harder this time. ‘Mm, and what would that be huh?’ She muttered against his lips in between kisses.

“Oh I dunno, go back into my bedroom, take off our clothes and dance around the room naked?” He chuckled against her lips as his now free hand travelled to her waist. Taking this opportunity, he took a couple of steps forward which forced her to walk backwards until she was pressed up against the counter.

Natasha laughed as she pulled back for a second in order to get a proper look at him. ‘You are such a dumbass,’ She said with another laugh before wrapping her arms around his neck.

“Well I’m your dumbass so your welcome for that,” He said as he kissed her before she had the chance to say anything else. That sentence alone was sort of on the borderline of confronting a relationship and he rather not go into it right now. So with that, he dropped his hands from her waist and tucked them under her thighs allowing him to lift her up and place her on top of the counter.

With her now on top of the counter, he spread her legs ever so slightly so he could step in between them all while moving his hands back to her waist so he could pull her closer.

‘My dumbass huh? I could get down with that yeah,’ She said with a chuckle as she pulled back from his kiss ever so slightly so she could adjust to their new position. Grabbing his tie, she pulled him down so they could kiss - knowing him he would probably say something that would ruin the moment.

Clint grinned against her lips, well that wasn’t exactly a bad reaction so he was pretty pleased with himself. 

With a lack of talking, things were starting to heat up as one by one smaller items of clothing began to come off until the two agents were breathless and red in the face.

“Uh, do you wanna go to my bedroom? I mean I would totally be down to have sex with you right here but uh Lucky is staring right at us and that’s kind of weird,” He chuckled as he glanced over his shoulder to see the dog staring right at them.

Looking over his shoulder, Nat just laughed before looking at him. ‘Alright, alright come on,’ She said before wiggling out of his grip. 

Kicking off her heels, she grabbed his hand before tugging him towards his bedroom. She pushed open the door and tugged Clint inside before shutting the door behind him.

Once they were both inside, Nat pressed both of her hands up against his chest and pushed him against the wall. Leaning upwards, she attached her lips to her neck while using her hands to slowly undo his shirt.

Groaning softly, Clint’s eyes fluttered to a close as his hands went to travel around her back and slowly began to unzip her dress. 

“Fuck Nat, we really doing this?” He muttered as his hands rose to her shoulders in order to push her dress off which slid right off of her body revealing what she was wearing underneath.

With wide eyes, Clint looked her up and down. “Holy shit, lingerie? You are gonna make me look so stupid with your hotness,” He groaned as she pulled back in order to grin up at him.

‘You like this huh? That’s dumb you couldn’t look stupid in front of me’ She said with a smirk as she began to undo his belt and tugged down his jeans only to reveal the fact he was wearing Captain America boxers.

“... I thought it would be funny. I didn’t think you would pull out all the stops like this,” Clint grumbled as his eyes started to wander to the red lacy garments that covered her body.

Giggling, she stepped out of her dress and pulled him away from the door and towards the bed. ‘It is funny, very funny. Sexy too and you know for a fact I am telling Steve,’ She said with a grin before clambering onto his bed and waved him over.

“Right so tell me how you are going to tell Steve that you saw me in Captain America boxers hm? If you tell him that I’m telling him about this very sexy getup,” He said with a grin as he kicked off his jeans and climbed onto the bed. Planting his hands on her hips, he smirked down at her.

‘If you tell him anything of the sort, I will kill you,’ She said as she glared up at him before eventually smiling. ‘Now let’s take these off, I don’t want Steve staring at my crotch the entire time,’ She said with a grin as she looped two of her fingers into the waistband of his boxers. Tonight was going to be fun.

* * *

The rest of the night went well, it went really well. Both of them stayed up into the early hours of the morning, doing some questionable things until they couldn’t hold their eyes open for longer than ten seconds.

Maybe they had gone a little overboard but they were still new to the whole relationship thing so it was somewhat excusable.

Natasha was the first to wake up, which wasn’t much of a surprise considering that Clint was not a morning person in the slightest.

Forcing her eyes opened, she turned over in the unfamiliar bed with a yawn. Glancing around the bedroom, she took note of the little details. From the posters on the wall to the clothes scattered around from the night before, this was somewhere she could get used to waking up to.

Hearing a groan come out from behind her, she smiled before rolling over to be met with Clint’s face only inches from her own.

‘Well hello there handsome, did you sleep well?’ She asked as she reached over and brushed her fingers through his hair.

Grumbling, Clint shut his eyes once again before shuffling forward and wrapped his arms around her waist tucking his face into her neck. “It’s way too early shhhhh,” He mumbled.

Laughing softly, she wrapped her arms around his back. ‘Clint it’s like 1 PM, we gotta get up now,’ She said with a grin, raking her fingers through the back of his hair. 

“Yeah exactly, it’s way too early let a man sleep,” He mumbled, brushing his nose against her jaw.

Hooking her leg over his waist, she shifted her weight and flipped them so she was straddling him. She was still wearing Clint’s shirt from the night before which was buttoned halfway up, just about covering her up.

‘Awww come on don’t be like that Clinty. Come on…’ She purred as she leant down and pressed a soft kiss against his lips.

“No no no don’t use that voice on me, that’s not fair bab-Nat…” He whined but quickly stopped because he wasn’t sure where his sentence was going. 

Clearing his throat, he bit down on his lower lip. “Just forget I said that… It kinda just slipped y’know not sure what your cool wit-” He began to ramble on but was cut off with a kiss.

‘Shut up, I’m cool with it. Never really thought about pet names before but it’s cute. How do you like dick? Or arrow boy? No, no what about dumbass? Quite fond of the last one actually,’ She teased.

Barton quirked an eyebrow up at her, that really wasn’t the answer he had been expecting. “Wait really? So like what does that make me your boyfriend or something weird like that?” He asked with a grin.

Shrugging her shoulders she leant down and kissed him once again. ‘Has a nice ring to it, Clint Barton, my dumb boyfriend.’


	14. Why did I think sex would be easy?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nat and Clint finally come clean with their teammates about their relationship.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Howdy there. This is a little later than I intended for it to be but I have been lacking creative motivation lately but I wanted to at least try keep a schedule so here we are! It's not very long or very good haha but hey here it is. - J

With Clint and Nat being a newly found couple, they were slowly discovering different difficulties that their relationship brought. 

From the lack of time they got together to the fact that they had to hide their relationship from everyone they knew and worked with, they were having a bit of a tough time. But neither of them would trade it for the world because for the first time in a long, long while.

The main problem that Clint was having was separating his work relationship and personal relationship with Natasha. Due to the fact that they barely saw one another, his mind was always in boyfriend mode which caused some pretty interesting scenarios to unfold before them.

Today just so happened to be one of those scenarios.

Upon arriving at work, he just so happened to spot a certain someone in one of the meeting rooms pouring over some files.

Glancing around the surrounding area, he checked to make sure no one was looking in his direction before quickly walking towards the meeting room.

Clint carefully opened the door and slipped in, pretty much silently as Natasha didn’t even glance up at the files she was reading over.

A smirk perked up the corners of his mouth as he was suddenly aware of what position this put him in. With that in mind, Clint tip-toed around the table before standing a couple of feet behind her.

Leaning over her shoulder, he brushed his lips over her neck before whispering into her ear. “Well hello there beautiful, how are you doi-” He began to purr but didn’t get very far as she quickly reacted to having an unknown man behind her.

In a split second, she span around, grabbing his arm as her other hand went up to wrap around this strange man’s throat before pushing him against the wall with fury written all over her face. 

“Babe, Baby! Nat! Stop it’s me! Clint! Stop!” He choked out as he aggressively tapped at her arm with his free arm as all the blood rushed to his face.

A look of confusion crossed over Natasha’s face as she suddenly understood that this wasn’t some creep that was attempting to hurt her but in fact, it was just her idiotic boyfriend that didn’t understand professionalism. 

‘Clint what the hell. We are working, are you stupid?’ She whispered as she hit him across the chest before letting go of the tight grip she had against his throat.

“Ouch! That hurt … And hey c’mon! I’m sorry but I haven’t seen you in like forever and when I saw you in here I got all excited….” Clint grumbled as he rubbed his throat from where Nat had just had a death grip on him. “But that whole choking thing … I mean I know you didn’t know it was me but holy shit was that hot,” He said with a small grin.

Glaring up at him, Nat crossed her arms over her chest before scoffing. ‘Seriously? I cannot believe you, Barton. Some of us actually want to look somewhat professional in their workplace,’ She grumbled.

“Oh come on! Professional my ass. I apologise, Tasha, I didn’t mean to creep up on you if that’s what you’re mad about. But I saw you from across the way and I missed you so I wanted to surprise you! I mean if you would still be down for a surprise I passed like three closets if you wanna … You know,” Clint said with a smirk as he winked at her, though it seemed that he wasn’t going to be getting the answer that he wanted.

‘I haven’t seen you, in what a week or so and the first thing you want to do is take me to a janitors closet so we can fuck? You are such a romantic Barton. We’ve been dating like what a month and already you’ve given up on any type of seduction? Not happening,’ She said with a slight smirk, wagging a finger in his face before moving back towards the files she had been looking over.

Huffing out a breath of air, Clint firmly planted his hands on his hips as he sided stepped and leant over her shoulder so she could see his face. “You really gonna be like that huh? Alright, fine. You’re really missing out though…” He whispered, trying to sway her decision.

Though before Clint could even get to any of his other seduction techniques, the door to the meeting room suddenly swung open causing for Clint to practically jump across the room as he pretended to be occupied with anything but romancing his secret girlfriend.

“Well well well look who it is! Phil! My man! Big P! Sup dawg……” Clint spluttered out, seemingly unable to control the things that came out of his mouth as Phil walked in. “Uh I mean hey,” He quickly corrected which got him many dirty looks from Nat.

_‘...Alright? God you are weird Barton. Anyway I was just dropping by to pass on a message from Rogers about a meeting something at the tower later today? Not sure about the specifics but I caught him earlier and you know that man can’t work a phone to save his life so I’ve been tasked with informing you,’_ Coulson said with a small smile, glancing between the two agents trying very hard not to read into what he had saw upon entry.

‘Thank you Phil, I’ll make sure we get to it in a bit,’ Nat said with a small smile as she looked up from what she was working on.

“Yup what she said. So gonna be there and do Avenger stuff … Y’know ‘cause we are Avengers,” Clint said as he shrugged his shoulders and stuck his hands in his pockets.

_‘Okay that’s my cue to leave. Have fun doing whatever you guys were doing, I saw nothing,’_ Coulson quickly said before turning around and leaving the room, shutting the door behind him.

As soon as the door came to a close Nat instantly turned around and thumped the side of his arm. ‘What the hell was that?! You are a spy, you know how to lie why did you freak out like that?! Clint you are gonna get us caught,’ She exclaimed, glaring up at him.

“OW. Will you please stop that?! I’m sorry I dunno what happened it just kinda slipped out! I mean it’s just Phil, it’s not like he’s gonna tell anyone. And besides he has been onto us before either of us had either done anything so technically it’s not my fault,” Clint said as he shrugged his shoulders, grabbing the side of his arm where she had hit him.

Sighing softly, Nat shook her head as she closed her eyes for a brief second. ‘I’m sorry, it’s just I don’t want something stupid that slipped out of your mouth to stop us from being together. If we are going to break up it is going to be dramatic, not because your dumb ass can’t keep it together,’ She grumbled as she looked up at him with a small smile.

“Planning our break up already? Damn Romanoff, you really know how to get my motor running,” Clint said with a soft laugh as he gazed down into her eyes. “Fuck it,” He muttered before leaning down and connected their lips in pleasant kiss.

She melted almost instantly into his touch, kissing him back with no effort. It was annoying that he had this sway on her like no one else, getting her to do things that she hadn’t even realised she wanted.

Pulling back from his lips, she sighed softly against his lips with a smile. ‘As much as I would love to do this right now baby, too risky I’m afraid. But you heard what Phil said, we have been requested at the tower so you know what that means…’ She said as she wiggled her eyebrows before standing on her tip-toes.

‘...Lots of free food,’ She whispered before pressing a kiss against the side of his face.

“My god you really know the way to my heart don’t you. But alright alright. I can be patient. Patience is my jam,” Clint huffed before taking a step backwards and crossed his arms over his chest. “You know what I’m so patient that I’m gonna sit here in this chair and wait for you to finish your work so we can go together,” He said as he pulled out one of the chairs underneath the table before sitting down.

Natasha chuckled slightly as she took a couple steps back and watched as the man planted himself down in a chair. 

'Right so rather than do any of the work that I know you have to do, you are gonna sit there and watch me do mine? That sounds about right' She said with a soft sigh before taking a seat. 'I'm not gonna entertain you so buckle up'

* * *

Hours passed and eventually Natasha had finished up her work, which had taken far too long in Clint’s opinion but he had made a silent oath not to complain whatsoever, which was something that he managed to stick to.

As soon as she had finished, Clint made sure that they got out of the base as soon as they could and headed right for the tower as soon as physically possible because he had never been more bored in his life. And he had been out of wifi for three days once and even then he still found some fun ways to pass the time.

The couple eventually arrived at the Avengers tower, only to find three of the other Avengers gathered in the main living area already waiting for them. Which was weird considering that it was rare that the majority of them met up when the world wasn’t collapsing in on itself.

“Alright, alright everyone calm down. We have arrived. I mean it was nice of you guys to wait though … Wait a minute what’s going on here?” Clint said as he looked around at the other Avengers as it was a weird atmosphere for just a meeting.

_‘I’m glad you guys could make it, we uh wanted to have a chat with you,’_ Steve said, breaking the silence as he turned around in order to face them.

_'Alright, Rogers we aren't gonna ease them into this. This is an intervention. You both gotta be clean with us. We know you two are like a thing or whatever so c'mon just be honest,'_ Tony said, raising his eyebrows in their direction.

Glancing at one another, Clint eventually broke out in a very awkward and choppy laugh.

"Whaaaaaaaaat?! Me? And her?! God no. I couldn't imagine anything worse in life than being with the woman who is stood next to me. I mean come on. Who would want her perfect face, or that incredible body … or uh or her badass personality whic-" Clint blabbered on before Nat interrupted him.

'Clint. Shut your goddamn mouth,' She whispered aggressively as she glared up at him.

"No let me finish I totally have this handled. Nat and I are just the best friends of all time and that was it" Clint said as he shrugged his shoulders which earned a shove from Nat.

Grabbing him by the arm, she pulled him to the side in order to talk to him privately. 'Clint. Listen to me. Maybe it's time to just tell them. I mean when are we gonna get another chance like this? Would you rather they find out in some other weird way?’ She asked him, looking up at him with curious eyes.

Clint sighed as he forced his eyes shut for a brief second before nervously glancing back towards the Avengers. “Well, yeah I guess we should tell them but that is kinda scary. I mean technically this is like a big step and it’s scary y’know?” He said as he shrugged his shoulders before looking down at her.

But there was just something about the way that she looked at him that he couldn’t say no. “Goddammit I hate your pretty face fine. Alright, let’s just do this and get it over and done with.” He grumbled which only caused for her to break out into what he could only describe as an evil grin as he grabbed his arm and pulled him back towards the others.

“Okay, so I guess it’s time to just state the truth. And the truth is that I am a single man and tha-” Clint began to say before getting elbowed in the side by Nat.

‘Barton you coward. What he meant to say is that yes, we are together or whatever you want to call. Though we did not need an intervention, we are not children and if we wanted to make our relationship public we would have,’ Natasha said as she rolled her eyes at them.

_‘Aha! I knew it! Rogers, you owe me twenty bucks. Wait how long has this been going on? If it’s longer than two weeks I owe Thor at least fifty,’_ Tony exclaimed before holding his hand out towards Steve, awaiting his payment.

_‘I am not giving twenty dollars to a man richer than half the population of the city,’_ Steve scoffed as he crossed his arms over his chest.

_‘Oh come on you are just saying that because you lost.’_ Tony spat back.

Clint and Nat both just stood back and watched whatever the madness before them had begun to unfold. 

“Wow, you guys too? First Coulson now you. Wait, has this been all your plan all along? What the hell, it wasn’t that obvious….” Clint grumbled as he narrowed his eyes in the direction of the other Avengers.

‘What do you mean it wasn’t that obvious?! First things first, the walls here aren’t soundproof. Like at all, neither are the floors or ceilings and you guys are very loud. I have been scarred for like so thanks for that. Also, it’s not like you were trying to hide it, we knew before either of you did,’ Tony said as he shrugged his shoulders.

“I can’t believe you guys. C’mon babe, I am not standing around for this bullshit,” Clint scoffed as he dropped his hands by his side before taking her hand and tugged her towards the elevator.

Natasha smirked as she nodded, more than happy to get out of this increasingly awkward dynamic.

‘Right yes. We are going to go to his bedroom to have very loud sex,' She said, smirking over her shoulder before dragging him over towards the elevator. 

As soon as the doors started to close, Clint instantly went to start unbuttoning his shirt as he turned to Nat with a smirk.

'What are you doing?' She said as she gave him an odd side look.

"I mean you just said that we were gonna have sex so I was taking off my shirt so we could have sex. What you wanna do it fully clothed? I mean alright but I would like to see you naked eventually…" He trailed off.

'Oh, that? No, I just said that as a joke. Why would we have sex in the middle of the day? You're funny Barton,' She said with a grin, knowing exactly what she was doing.

"Right haha right that's crazy. Crazy thought, no sex of course. How dare I assume," He grumbled as he started to rebutton his shirt up.

Natasha chuckled as she shook her head, taking a couple of steps over towards him she reached up and stopped his hands from what they were doing. 

'You are so easy to wind up, let me help you with that’ She said with a grin before moving his hands out of the way so she could continue unbuttoning his shirt. 

Leaning up towards his neck, she slowly peppered his skin with small kisses. ‘Come on baby … Let’s make up for lost time hm?’ She muttered as her fingers went to brush over the now exposed skin that his shirt had been covering.

Huffing out a somewhat frustrated sigh, he caved in almost an instant as his hands went to settle on her waist.

"You know I can never say no when you use that sexy voice," He grumbled before leaning down and kissed her.

She laughed against his lips as she pulled back slightly. 'My sexy voice? I was using my normal voice you weirdo,' Nat chuckled before kissing him once again.

"You have a sexy voice alright? Shut up," He muttered as he stumbled forwards all while kissing her. “I hope you are ready to be sexed,” Clint grumbled as the doors pinged open.

‘Oh god, I can’t believe I’m with a man who just said the word sexed,’ She laughed as she grabbed either side of his face, pulling him further into his bedroom.

“What? You don’t wanna be sexed by me? Because I think you know by now that I can sex you sooooo good,” Clint grumbled as he shrugged his shirt from his shoulders before hooking his hands up her shirt and pulled it up over her arms as he tossed it aside.

‘Jeez Barton, when you say it like that you really get me going,’ She said with a laugh as she stepped forwards and slipped her fingers through his belt loops in order to pull him closer. ‘Can’t believe I ended up with someone like you,’ She said, lifting up her head in order to kiss him but was stopped before she even got close enough.

Furrowing his eyebrows, he glared down at her with pursed lips as he tried to process what she had just said to him because to him it almost sounded like an insult.

“Wait a minute. What do you mean someone like me? What the hell is that supposed to mean?” He said, placing his hands on either side of her shoulder so she wouldn’t try and kiss him.

‘Well you know, like you. I think you’re reading into my words too much babe, come here,’ She said as she reached up to wrap her hands around his wrists, sliding his hands off of her shoulders. Standing on her tiptoes, she brushed her lips over the skin under his jaw before slowly sucking in one spot.

Groaning softly, Clint shut his eyes as he just sunk in the pleasure for a brief second. “No, no no wait stop! What are you saying? Are you not happy with who I am or something? You got a problem with me?” He questioned quickly as he stepped back from her to stop with what she was doing.

‘Oh come on Clint are you being serious right now? All I meant was that you weren’t exactly what I had in mind if I were to ever settle down with someone. But that’s not a bad thing. Do you never wonder what life would be like if you hadn’t been the one S.H.I.E.L.D. sent?’ She questioned as she crossed her arms over her chest.

“What?! How did you get to that! My god. So what I’m getting from this conversation is that I am subpar to what you had imagined for yourself? How kind. And of course, I never thought about that because I know what would have happened. You would probably be dead because this country is filled with soulless hateful people and I would also be dead, probably drank myself to death because I wouldn’t have had anyone to care about. Which now doesn’t actually sound like a bad idea, so thanks,” Clint spat back as he placed his hands on his hips for extra emphasis.

‘You are twisting my words, I never said that. If you just listened to me once in your life you would understand that. Barton, you are the biggest drama queen I know,’ She said with a roll of her eyes.

“You know what? Fine, be like that. I’m leaving, don’t ask where because you cannot come with me. And I can’t believe I’m passing up sex right now but you have pissed me off,” He scoffed as he bent over and grabbed his shirt before he began to do it up.

‘Clint … No wait. Are you really gonna storm out of your own bedroom?’ Nat questioned, her voice a little softer than it had been before.

“Yes I am storming out of my own bedroom and you can leave, or stay I don’t care,” Clint grumbled as he fumbled with his buttons before walking back into the elevator. “I am an adult man and I know my worth. Let me know when you realise it too,” He scoffed before slamming his hand on the button.

Natasha stood back and watched as the doors shut, leaving her stood half-naked in his bedroom alone. ‘Why did I think sex would be easy?’


End file.
